E 
601 

.H5 

X 


-^IQ^N^^ 


THE    DISMISSAL 


OF 


MAJOR  GRANYILLE  0.  HALLER, 


OF  THE 

REGULAR   ARMY, 

OF 

THE     TJZtTITEID     STATES, 

BY   ORDER  OF  THE 

SECRETARY    OP    WAR, 

IN 

SPECIAL    ORDERS,    No.    331,    OF   JULY    25th,    1863. 

ALSO, 

A  Brief  Memoir  of  his  Military  Services, 

AXI> 

A   FEW    OBSERVATIONS. 


"They  that  have  done  tho  deed,  ai%e  honorable  : 
"  What  private  griefs!  they  have,  alas,  I  know  not, 
"  That  made  them  do 't ;  they  are  wise  and  honorable, 
"  And  will,  no  doubt,  with  reason  answer  you." 

MARK  ANTONY'S  Oration  over  CAESAR. 


PRINTED    AT    THE    DAILY    GUARDIAN    OFFICE, 

BROADWAY,    CORNER   OF  MAIN  STREET. 
1863. 


THE     DISMISSAL 


MAJOR  GRANVILLE  0.  HALLER, 


OF  THE  \£2.0-(S 


REGULAR  ARMY, 


THE    TJITITIED     STATES 


BY   ORDER  OP  THE 


SECRETARY    OP    WAR, 


SPECIAL   OEDER8,    No.    331,    OF   JULY   25th,    1863. 


• 
ALSO, 


A  Brief  Memoir  of  his  Military  Services, 

AND 

A    FEW    OBSERVATIONS. 


"  They  that  have  done  the  deed,  are  honorable  : 
"  What  private  griefs  they  have,  alas,  I  know  not, 
"  That  made  them  do  't ;  they  are  wise  and  honorable, 
"  And  will,  no  doubt,  with  reason  answer  you." 

MABK  ANTONY'S  Oration  over  CAESAU. 


Faterson,  N.  J. 
FEINTED    AT   THE   DAILY   GUAEDIAN    OFFICE, 

BROADWAY,   CORNER  OF  MAIN  STREET. 

1863, 


b  ko 

.  H3 


CORRECTIONS  AND  ADDITIONS. 

On  page  16th,  line  26th,  read  :  [Yet  he  picked  up  and  brought 
away  some  Southern  man's  slave,  and  had  his  services  when  this  let- 
ter was  written.  It  was  the  interference  of  Northern  men  with  the 
slaves  of  Southern  men  and  not  slavery  itself  that  has  proved  "A 
CURSE  "  "A  year  ago"  he  says,  "/  was  a  pro-slavery  man,  but 
I  saw  enough" —  During  this  year  he  was  on  shipboard,  and  the 
Planters  were  at  war  with  the  North,  then,  what  could  he  have  seen 
•'flown  south  to  change  my  views  entirely  ?"~\ 

On  page  18th,  line  23rd,  insert  7  and  8,  to  read  :  "copied  on  pages 
7  and  8." 

Same  page,  line  27th,  add  to  the  words  "and  was  strongly  advised 
against  it."  This  was  in  May  last,  two  months  after  the  charges 
had  been  sent  to  the  War  Department,  and  as  the  Secretary  of  War 
had  not  entertained  them,  it  was  considered  a  sufficient  refutation, 
and  on  this  ground  the  subject  was  dropped. 

Next  to  last  line,  page  21st,  read  "this  averment." 

Page  28th,  line  22ud,  read  "Nachitockes." 

Page  39th  the  translator  followed  the  French  orthography  of 
Father  Pandosy,  in  Indian  names.  Owvrai  is  better  known  as  Ow- 
hi,  the  brother-in-law  of  Kamiarken  ;  and  Sklon  as  Skilu-om,,  a 
brother  of  this  great  chief. 

Page  69th,  line  24th.  read  :  "to  ascertain,  if  possible,  the  number 
approaching." 

Pages  74  and  75,  read :  "defense  of  Wrightsville"  and  "defenses." 


=••'  3  3 


THE     DISMIS  SAL 


OP 


MAJOR  GRANVILLE  0.  HALLER, 


REGULAR    ARMY, 


OF 


THE     TJ3STITBID 


WAB  DEPARTMENT,  } 

ADJUTANT  GENEBAL'S  OFFICE,     V 

WASHINGTON,  D.  C.,  July  25th,  1863. ) 

SPECIAL  OBDEBS,  ) 

No.  331.        f  [EXTBACT.J 

By  direction  of  the  President,  the  following  named  officers 
are  hereby  dismissed  the  service  of  the  United  States  : 

Major  Granville  O.  Haller,  7th  U.  S.  Infantry,  for  disloyal 
conduct  and  the  utterance  of  disloyal  sentiments. 

•*-X--X--5f-X--3f-&-*-!f 

By  order  of  the  Secretary  of  War, 

(Signed)  E.  D.  TOWNSEND, 

Asst.  Adj.  General. 
OFFICIAL  : 

(Signed)  BOBT.  WILLIAMS,  A,  A,  G, 


DISCOVERY  OF  THE  DISMISSAL,  AND  WHAT  WAS  DONE  TO  BEPAIB  THE 

DAMAGES. 

By  the  merest  accident  I  heard  of  my  dismissal,  while  on 
duty,  making  out  certain  reports  in  York,  Pa.,  and  hastened  to 
Washington  to  learn  the  cause  of  it.  On  the  29th  of  July  I 
called  at  the  War  Department,  and  on  inquiry  I  was  informed 
that  one  Clark  H.  Wells,  a  Lieut.  Commander  of  the  U.  S. 
Navy,  had  been  recently  there  in  person,  calling  the  Secretary 
of  War's  attention  to  a  letter  he  had  written  some  four  months 
before,  and  of  which  he  (Wells)  had  furnished  me  a  copy  :  that 
this  Naval  Officer  was  thereupon  sent  before  Colonel  Joseph 
Holt,  the  Judge  Advocate  General,  U.  S.  Army,  who  examined 
him  and  administered  to  him  an  oath,  and  then  submitted  a  re- 
port with  comments  upon  the  statements. 

The  whole  proceedings  were  done  privately,  without  giving 
me  the  slightest  notice  of  any  accusations  being  entertained 
against  me  by  the  War  Department,  and,  of  course,  I  was  de- 
barred the  privilege  of  meeting  my  accuser  'face  to  face  and 
of  cross-examining  him;  also,  of  proving  by  the  direct  testi- 
mony of  an  officer  who  was  present,  that  the  statements  con- 
tained in  said  Wells'  letter  to  the  Secretary  of  War  were  false. 

I  hastened  back  to  York  and  there  prepared  a  letter,  some- 
what in  the  form  of  a  defence  to  serve  me,  in  a  measure,  in  place 
of  that  regular  defence  which  I  had  no  opportunity  before  to 
make.  It  was  dated  on  the  8th  of  August,  1*863,  and  will  be 
found  in  the  concluding  pages  of  this  statement,  in  which  I  re- 
quested "  the  privilege  of  proving  before  a  Court  of  Inquiry,  or 
properly  authorized  Court,  that  the  report  was  made  upon  the 
false  testimony  of  an  incompetent  and  irresponsible  witness." 

Learning  that  the  Honorable  JEREMIAH  S.  BLACK,  Ex-Attorney 
General  of  the  United  States,  under  President  Buchanan,  in- 
tended" shortly  after  to  repair  to  Washington,  and  having  found 
him  on  all  occasions  a  warm  and  consistent  friend  of  mine,  and 
knowing  moreover  that  Mr.  STANTON  was  indebted  to  Judge 
BLACK  for  the  California  cases  which  gave  him  prominence  as 
a  Lawyer,  and  for  suggesting  him  (Mr.  STANTON)  for  Attorney- 


General,  while  he  (Judge  BLACK)  took  charge  of  the  Port-folio 
of  the  Secretary  of  State, — I  requested  Judge  BLACK  to  do  me 
the  kindness  to  present  my  defence  to  the  Secretary  of  War. 
This  he  has  done,  and  was  promised  an  answer,  after\careful 
perusal,  yet  the  Secretary  has  not  had  the  courtesy  to  reply  as 
he  promised.  In  the  middle  of  September  I  again  repaired  to 
Washington,  and  there  submitted  the  following  applications,  to 
wit: 

EBBITT  HOUSE,         ) 
WASHINGTON,  D.  C.,  September  15th,  1863.  f 

Hon.  Edwin  M.  Stanton,  Secretary  of  War  : 

SIR  :  I  respectfully  request  that  I  may  be  furnished  with  a  copy  of  the  pro- 
ceedings of  Col.  HOLT,  Judge  Advocate  General,  U.  S.  A.,  upon  whose  report  1 
have  been  dismissed  the  service  of  the  United  States. 
I  am,  Sir,  very  respectfully, 

Your  Obedient  Servant, 

GEANVILLE  O.  HALLEK, 

(late  a  Major  7th  U.  S.  Infantry.) 

This  letter  was  returned  to  me  with  the  following  endorse- 
ment on  the  back,  viz. : 

"  Kespectfully  returned  to  Major  G.  O.  HALLEK.  The  Secretary  of  War  de- 
"  clines  to  accede  to  his  request  " 

"By  order  of  the  Secretary  of  War. 

(SIGNED)        JAS.  A.  HARDIE, 

War  Department,  September  19th,  '63.  A.  A.  G. 

To  G.  O.  HALLEE,  Esq.,  York,  Pa." 

(Eeceived,  York,  September  23d,  in  the  evening. ) 

The  other  application  was  as  follows  : 

EBBITT  HOUSE,  WASHINGTON,  D.  C.  ) 

.  September  16th,  '63.  \       » 

Hon.  Edw.  M.  Stanton,  Secretary  of  War  : 

SIB  :  I  respectfully  call-  your  attention  to  my  letter,  dated  at  York,  Penna., 
August  8th,  1863,  and  which  was  presented  by  the  HON.  JEREMIAH  S.  BLACK,  Ex- 
Attorney  General  of  the  U.  S. ,  in  which  I  asked  for  a  Court  of  Inquiry  or  prop- 
erty authorized  Court,  but  have  received  no  reply. 

I  beg  leave  to  renew  the  subject,  and  respectfully  request  that  I  may  be 
1  ordered  or  allowed  to  appear  before  the  Commission  now  in  session,  in  this  city, 
which  investigates  cases  where  OFFICERS  of  the  Army  have  been  dismissed  the 
service  of  the  United  States,  without  previously  having  had  an  opportunity  of  de- 
fending themselves  from  the  charges  alleged  against  them. 

The  special  orders,  No.  331.  current  series,  announces  that  I  have  been  dis- 
missed for  "  disloyal  conduct  and  the  utterance  of  disloyal  sentiments"  and  Lieut. 


Commander  C.  H.  WELLS,  U.  S.  Navy,  has  alleged  against  me  as  follows  :  "Here's 
to  a  Northern  Confederation  and  a  Southern  one  while  Lincoln  is  President.'  This 
was  given  in  the  shape  of  a  toast  to  Major  WHITING,  and  which  called  forth  a  se- 
vere rebuke  from  me,  and  which  was  the  cause  of  my  leaving  him." 

I  wish  to  prove  by  the  direct  testimony  of  Major  CHAELES  J.  WHITING,  2d  U. 
S.  Cavalry,  that  I  never  gave  him  such  a  toast,  and  that  he  did  not  leave  me  for 
this  reason.  And,  by  a  cross-examination  of  the  said  Lieut.  Commander  WELLS, 
I  wish  to  prove  the  real  cause  of  his  leaving  me,  and  expose  his  unworthy  con- 
duct and  character.  I  will  prove  that  this  same  Lieut.  Commander  Wells,  after 
having  taken  the  new  oath  of  allegi  ance,  spoke  of  it  to  a  visitor  as  having  "just 
performed  the  most  painful  act  of  his  life,  that  he  had  been  compelled  to  take  the  oath 
of  allegiance  or  be  dismissed  from  the  service,  and  that  his  necessities  had  made  him 
do  this  violence  to  his  views  regarding  the  war  then  commencing,'"  or  words  of  similar 
import.  Also  other  items  which  will  show  how  to  estimate  his  statement. 

I  wish  also  to  prove  by  the  testimony  of  Brigadier  General  BAUPT,  and  Ma- 
jor General  BUKNSIDE  that  in  December  last,  the  time  of  his  visit,  my  conduct 
was  marked  for  its  loyalty  ;  and  by  Major  General  COUCH,  that  at  the  time  he 
(Wells)  was  in  Washington  personally  endeavoring  to  create  a  doubt  as  to  my 
loyalty,  my  conduct  was  truly  loyal.  I  believe  that  I  can  prove  by  evidence  that 
my  conduct  uniformly  has  been  truly  loyal.  I  have  now  in  my  possession  the 
written  testimony  of  Major  Generals  BURNSIDE  and  COUCH  as  to  «oy  loyalty.  I 
trust  that  my  actions  will  be  better  proof  of  my  sentiments  than  mere  words. 

In  my  communication  I  have  not  asked  to  be  reinstated.  I  have  merely 
asked  what  I  have  been  taught  to  regard  in  this  country  as  a  well  established 
right — the  right  to  face  my  accuser,  to  cross-examine  him,  and  produce  evidence 
which  may  rebut  his  accusations.  I  deem  it  a  duty  to  my  family,  to  my  friends, 
and  to  my  country,  as  well  as  to  myself,  to  seek  an  investigation  and  prove  that 
I  have  been  misrepresented. 

I  beg  leave  to  add  that  my  circumstances  require  me  soon  to  repair  to  Wash- 
ington Territory,  and  I  understand  that  Lieut  Commander  WELLS,  U.  S.  Navy, 
will  be  sent  to  sea  in  a  few  weeks.  I  therefore  respectfully  request  a  speedy  de- 
cision on  my  application. 

I  am,  sir,  very  .respectfully, 

Your  obedient  servant, 

GI^ANVILLE  O.  HALLER, 
(Late  Major  7th  U.  S.  Infantry. 

Not  hearing  from  the  War  Department  up  to  the  morning  of 
the  23d  of  September,  I  wrote  the  following  letter  : 

YOEK,  PENNA,  September  23d,  1863. 
My  Dear  Colonel : 

On  handing  you  my  two  applications  (one  for  a  copy  of  Judge  HOLT'S  pro- 
ceedings in  my  case,  and  the  other  asking  to  be  ordered  before  the  Commission 
sitting  in  Washington  to  have  my  case  investigated)  you  were  kind  enough  to 
*ay  that  you  would  attend  to  them  and  give  me  an  answer. 


Allow  me  to  ask  :  If  you  have  forwarded  any  answer  to  those  applications  ? 
If  not,  is  there  any  reason  why  I  should  wait  longer  for  an  answer  ? 

Had  I  been  tried  by  a  Court  Martial  you  are  aware  that  I  would  have  been 
entitled  to  a  copy  of  the  proceedings  in  my  case  from  the  War  Department.  As 
the  proceedings  of  Col.  HOLT  caused  my  dismissal  it  seems  equally  clear  that  I 
should  be  allowed  a  copy  of  the  facts  and  of  his  comments. 

I  learned  in  Washington  incidentally  that  the  Commission  (of  which  General 
BICKETTS  is  President,  now  setting  in  your  city,)  has  investigated  cases  where 
officers  had  been  dismissed  for  perhaps  six  months,  and  by  this  means  established 
their  innocence,  and  of  cases  where  officers  have  been  charged  with  forgery  and 
other  criminal  acts.  I  am  therefore  aware  of  no  serious  objection  to  my  case 
being  referred  to  it. 

If  I  can  get  no  answer,  or  a  refusal,  the  conclusion  is  forced  upon  me  that 
the  War  Department  would  prefer  that  the  public  should  believe  that  I  have  been 
guilty  of  "disloyal  conduct,"  and  have  uttered  "disloyal  sentiments,"  and 
leaves  me  no  other  means  of  defence  than  to  publish,  as  General  Franklin  has 
done,  a  pamphlet  in  vindication  of  my  loyalty,  and  let  the  public  judge  between 
us. 

I  will  esteem  it  a  favor  to  receive  from  you  a  prompt  reply,  either  officially 
or  privately,  to  determine  my  future  action. 

I  am,  Dear  Colonel,  Truly  Yours, 

GBANVILLE  O.  HALLEB. 
Lieut.  Col.  JAS.  A.  HARDIE,  Asst.  Sec'y  of  War, 

Washington,  D.  C. 

This  letter  was  delivered  in  the  post  office,  and  the  same 
evening  the  endorsement  on  letter  of  September  15th  came  to 
hand.  To  this  f  time,  no  other  communication  has  been  re- 
ceived, and  I  therefore  submit  the  case  as  it  is  known. 


THE  CHABGES. 

The  following  is  a  copy  of  the  letter  written  to  the  Secretary 
of  War,  by  Clark  H.  Wells,  U.  S.  N.,  over  four  months  before 
my  dismissal,  and  the  only  charges  known  to  me,  as  having 
been  made. 

NAVY  YABD,         J 
PHILADELPHIA,  March  3d,  1863.  f 

SIR  :  As  a  loyal  .officer  of  the  U.  S.  Navy,  it  becomes  my  duty,  however  pain- 
ful, to  report  to  you,  officially,  Major  GRANVILLE  O.  HALLEB,  U.  S.  A.,  now  a 
Brevet  Lieutenant  Colonel  Sixth  Infantry,  for  uttering  disloyal  sentiments  in  my 
presence,  on  the  night  of  December  16th  or  17th,  1862,  in  his  tent  opposite 


8 

Fredericksburg,  Va.,  such  as  these  :  "Here's  to  a  Northern  Confederation  and  a 
Southern  one,  while  Lincoln  is  President."  This  -was  given  in  the  shape  of  a 
toast  to  Major  Whiting,  and  which  called  forth  a  severe  rebuke  from  me,  and 
which  was  the  cause  of  my  leaving  him,  and  when  I  had  declared  my  intention 
of  doing  so,  in  consequence  of  his  disloyal  language,  he  replied  ' '  that  if  his 
presence  was  so  disagreeable  to  me,  he  would  procure  as  a  companion  to  share 
with  me  his  tent,  a  Black  Republican,  and  he  would  go  elsewhere."  He  had  also 
said  on  a  former  occasion,  "  that  he  considered  the  President  responsible  for  the 
loss  of  life  at  the  battle  of  Fredericksburg."  I  enclose  to  you  copies  of  two  let- 
ters addressed  to  Major  now  Brevet  Lieut.  Col.  HALLEB,  and  extract  from  his  in 
relation  to  this  matter,  which  I  conceive  to  be  my  duty  to  lay  before  you. 

I  will  furnish  a  copy  of  this  letter  to  Major,  now  Brevet  Lieutenant  Colonel 

Haller. 

Eespectfully  yours, 

C.  H.  WELLS, 

Lieut.  Commander,  U.  S.  -N. 

HON.  E.  M.  STANTON,  Secretary  of  War,  Washington  City,  D.  C. 


DIRECT  TESTIMONY. 

The  Major  Whiting,  alluded  to  as  the  officer  to  whom  I  gave 
a  toast,  is  MAJOR  CHARLES  J.  WHITING,  2ND  U.  S.  CAVALRY,  who, 
on  my  sending  him  recently -a  copy  of  Wells'  letter,  writes : 

PORTLAND,  ME.,  September  27th,  1863. 
My  Dear  Major  : 

Yours  of  the  23d  I  received  yesterday,  also  a  copy  of  *C.  H.  WELLS'  letter  to 
the  Secretary  of  War.  I  say  without  any  hesitation,  that  upon  the  time  referred 
to  in  his  letter,  you  never  proposed  such  a  toast,  as  he  says  you  did,  or  uttered 
any  sentiments  which  a  true  lover  of  his  country  might  not  have  uttered,  even  as 
an  officer  of  the  army.  I  cannot  recollect  the  whole  conversation  ;  but  my  r.ecol- 
lection  of  the  general  tenor  of  it"  is  very  distinct — and  I  think  Lieut.  WELLS  first 
got  offended  with  you,  upon  your  asking  him  why  he  had  not  crossed  the  pon- 
toon bridge  ?  which  question  was  drawn  from  you  by  WELLS'  insinuating,  that 
you  had  always  remained  at  Headquarters.  You  are  at  liberty  to  show  this  let- 
ter to  any  of  your  friends,  and  state  publicly  or  in  print,  that  I  pronounce  Lieut. 
WELLS'  statement  in  regard  to  you,  in  connection  with  my  name,  as  false  in 
spirit,  as  well  as  letter. 

Yours  truly, 

CHAS.  J.  WHITING. 
Keceired  at  York,  Pa.,  October  3d,  1863,  on  my  return  from  Chambersburg,  P». 


But  the  accusations  date  back  to  December  16th  or  17th, 
1862,  at  which  time  MAJOR  GENERAL  BURNSIDE  was  in  command. 
Desirous  of  knowing,  whether  or  not  he  was  satisfied  with  my 
conduct  and  loyalty,  after  I  had  been  accused  of  "  disloyal  sen- 
ments"  by  this  unfortunate  Wells,  I  addresed  a  note  to  him, 
and  received  the  following  reply : 

HEADQUARTERS  DEPARTMENT  OP  THE  OHIO,  \ 
CINCINNATI,  OM  March  27,  1863..     f 

Major  Oranville  0.  Hatter,  Headquarters  Army  Potomac : 

MY  DEAR  MAJOR  :  I  take  great  pleasure  in  answering  yours  of  the  22d  inst., 
and  awarding  to  you  my  cordial  approbation  of  your  services  while  under  my 
command. 

The  interest,  skill,  and  loyalty  you  have  always  manifested  in  the  performance 
of  your  duties,'  was  a  subject  of  comment  at  our  Headquarters,  and  the  result  of 
your  labors  was  always  satisfactory. 

Your  faithful  services,  both  before  the  breaking  out  of  this  rebellion,  and 
since  the  commencement  of  the  war,  have  given  abundant  proof  to  the  public  of  „ 
your  devotion  to  your  country,  and  your  friends  who  have  known  you  need  no 
evidence  to  substantiate  your  loyalty  and  true  patriotism. 

I  regret  that  you  find  it  necessary  to  ask  to  be  relieved  from  your  post,  and 
trust  your  health  may  spon  allow  you  to  return  to  duty  in  the  field. 

I  am,  Sir, 

Very  truly  yours, 

A.  E.  BUKNSIDE,  Maj.  Gen. 

At  the  time  this  unfortunate  Wells  was  in  Washington,  per- 
sonally playing  the  part  of  an  Informer,  I  was  employed  by 
MAJOR  GENERAL  COUCH,  as  an  Extra  Aide-de-camp,  and  busily 
engaged,  at  remote  points  from  him,  in  organizing  the  militia  ; 
obstructing  the  roads  in  the  South  Mountain ;  directing  mili- 
tary operations ;  and  with  a  few  score  of  mounted  men,  observ- 
ing the  enemy,  and  keeping  the  General  advised  of  the  Kebel ' 
movements,  in  Adams  and  York  Counties. 

In  a  private  letter  I  had  the  honor  to  receive  from  GENERAL 
COUCH,  after  he  had  learned  the  alleged  grounds  for  my  dismis- 
sal, alluding  to  the  cause  of  it,  he  writes  that  it  "  perfectly  as- 
tounded me,  never  dreaming  but  that  you  were  as  loyal  as  my- 
self." 


10 

\ 

On  the  27th  of  June,  1863,  alluding  to  my  services  in  the 
neighborhood  of  Gettysburg,  in  a  telegram  to  me  he  says  : 
"  Your  assistance  has  been  invaluable." 

And,  in  an  "  official "  letter,  he  writes  as  follows : 

HEAD  QUARTERS,  DEPARTMENT  OF  SUSQUEHANNA,  I 
Chambersburg,  August  13,  '63. 

Major  G.  0.  Holler,  York,  Pa.  : 

DEAR  SIR  :  I  duly  received  your  letter  of  the  28th  inst.,  transmitting  reports 
of  your  operations  at  Gettysburg,  York,  Columbia,  &c. ,  while  serving  in  the  ca- 
pacity of  Aide-de-camp  on  my  Staff. 

Having  carefully  read  these  reports,  I  was  impressed  with  the  energy,  action 
and  good  judgment  displayed  by  you  at  the  time  of  the  invasion.  Without 
any  organized  force  at  the  commencement  of  it,  you,  with  the  aid  of  loyal  citizens 
of  Gettysburg  and  vicinity,  were  enabled  to  make  a  show  of  resistance  to  the  in- 
vaders, and  keep  this  department,  and  therefore  the  General  Government,  well 
informed  of  rebel  movements. 

Your  services  were  valuable  to  the  country.  For  this  Department  I  ex- 
press to  you  my  thanks. 

You  can  leave  to  your  children  the  proud  heritage  that  when  your  State  was 
threatened  by  the  fearful  calamity  of  rebel  invasion  you  were  among  the  very 
foremost  of  its  defenders. 

I  am  very  respectfully, 

Your  Obedient  Servant, 

D.  N.  COUCH, 

Major  General. 

Here  I  might  allow  my  case  to  rest.  The  testimony  of  Major 
Whiting  and  of  Major  Generals  Burnside  and  Couch  are  consis- 
tent and  conclusive.  Although  actions  are  better  evidence  than 
words,  the  words  themselves  are  here  conclusive. 

But  this  is  not  the  only  testimony  I  have  to  produce.  I  will 
show  before  closing  my  defence  that  this  unfortunate  Wells  has 
been  a  Democrat,  a  Secessionist,  and  a  Republican  and  Negro 
Sympathizer,  which  are  not  only  inconsistent  but  cannot  fail  to 
excite  a  lively  mistrust  in  his  love  for  truth  and  for  fixed  princi- 
ples. But  at  the  date,  the  16th  or  17th  of  December,  he  was 
stopping  with  me  as  my  guest,  yet  he  ignores  the  rules  of  hos- 
pitality, and  endeavors  to  injure  me,  for  he  tells  Mr.  Stanton  of  a 
toast  I  should  have  given  Major  WHITING,  which  caused  him  to 
give  me  a  severe  rebuke,  then  leave  my  tent,  never  to  come  near 


11 

it  again  so  far  as  his  letter  goes.  His  language  in  this  letter 
plainly  tells  that  he  could  not  any  longer  hold  intercourse  with 
me — one  so  disloyal  as  myself.  But  I  will  now  present  a  few  of 
his  letters  to  me  after  this  event,  to  give  the  lie  from  his  own  lips 
to  this  idea,  thrown  out  by  him  to  gull  Secretary  STANTON.  He 
says  that  I  gave  that  toast,  on  the  16th  or  17th  of  December. 
Now  only  two  or  three  days  after  this,  he  wrote  to  me  as  fol- 
lows: 

YOEK,  PA.,  December  19,  1862. 
My  Dear  Major : 

I  arrived  home  safely  in  a  few  hours  after  leaving  General  Franklin's  tent,  ' 
and  found  all  the  folks  well.     Mrs.  Haller  and  the  children  took  supper  with  us 
last  evening,  and  had  you  been  present  you  would  have  enjoyed  the  oysters, 
which  were  very  fine  indeed.     I  enjoyed  them  the  more,  as  my  appetite  had  been 
sharpened  by  my  brief  campaign  in  Virginia. 

I  gave  your  wife  all  the  news,  and  when  I  had  done,  I  found  that  I  had  not 
imparted  anything  that  she  had  not  seen  in  the  papers.  The  people,  as  well  as  I 
can  judge,  are  not  dispirited  in  the  least ;  those  who  sympathize  with  the  South 
are  exultant  as  a  matter  of  course,  and  would  no  doubt  give  expression  to  their 
thoughts  if  they  thought  they  could  do  so  with  impunity.  [Here  he  admits  that 
he  has  not  heard  of  a  single  instance  where  a  person  has  given  expression  to  his 
thoughts,  but  it  is  a  matter  of  course,  in  his  mind,  that  there  are  Southern  sympa- 
thizers and  that  they  are  exultant..  Is  not  a  clause  like  this  mere  slander  ?] 

All  admire  the  gallant  conduct  of  Franklin,  inasmuch,  that  his  friends  here 
are  going  to  present  him  with  a  sword,  which  he  is  certainly  deserving  of,  and 
which  he  will  no  doubt  appreciate.  [On  my  return  to  York,  I  found  that  the 
statement  about  the  presentation  of  a  sword  was  a  mere  freak  of  his  imagina- 
tion!] 

There  is  nothing  else  going  on  in  town  ;  even  the  battle  of  Saturday  last  is  lit- 
tle talked  of,  which  shows  the  phlegmatic  character  of  our  population. 

I  travelled  to  Washington  in  company  with  Lieut.  B.,  (Corps  of  Engineers),  and 
learned  from  him  that  you  had  had  another  entertainment,  the  effects  of  which 
he  felt  in  the  shape  of  a  headache.  How  did  you  stand  it  ?  I  am  afraid  that 
these  little  social  gatherings  tend  to  make  you  express  yourself  too  openly  on  po- 
litical subjects,  which  some  civilian  might  take  advantage  of,  and  use  it  to  your 
prejudice,  and  so  I  would  caution  you  to  be  more  guarded.  [Does  not  this  im- 
ply that  he  would  scorn,  as  all  officers  would,  to  take  advantage  of,  and  use  to  my 
prejudice,  any  opinions  I  express  in  the  privacy  of  my  tent  to  friends  ?] 

I  shall  ever  recollect  my  visit  to  the  Army,  and  bear  witness  to  the  bravery  and 
devotion  of  our  troops.  It  has  made  a  most  pleasant  impression  upon  my  mind; 
and  I  am  more  confident  than  ever  of  our  ultimate  success. 

Remember  me  kindly  to  Captain  Gushing  and  to  Major  Whiting  ;  also  those 
whose  names  I  cannot  now  recollect. 


12 

Lieut.  Spaulding,  2d  Cavalry,  was  kind  enough  to  loan  me  his  horse,  when  I 
rode  to  Franklin's  Headquarters.  I  returned  him  the  next  day  by  an  Orderly 
from  Franklin's  Corps.  I  hope  he  arrived  safely,  as  he  had  been  well  taken 
care  of. 

Thank  Mr.  Spaulding  for  me  for  his  horse  and  kind  attentions  ;  also  Dr.  Wil- 
son, who  lives  in  the  same  tent  with  him. 

I  saw  the  Asst.  Secretary  of  the  Navy  for  a  moment,  and  he  assured  me 
that  I  should  be  ordered  as  Captain  of  the  Philadelphia  Navy  Yard  ;  so  I  shall 
soon  leave. 

If  I  can  be  of  any  service  to  you  let  me  know.  I  saw  your  brother  this  morn- 
ing, and  gave  him  a  brief  account  of  yourself,  and  the  military  operations  before 
Fredericksburg. 

Look  out  for  the  bridge  over  the  Potomac  Creek,  I  came  across  in  an  open 
car,  and,  I  felt  very  much  like  a  man  suspended  by  a  wire.  Let  me  hear  from 

you  soon. 

Sincerely  yours, 

C.  H.  WELLS,  U.  S.  N. 


Here  he  says :  "  IF  I  CAN  BE  OF  ANY  SEBVICE  TO  YOU  LET  ME 
KNOW."  Is  this  the  language  to  be  expected  from  him,  after 
writing  such  statements  to  Mr.  STANTON?  In  this  letter  he 
makes  a  direct  allusion  to  my  political  opinions,  but  shows  most 
clearly  that  he  was  not  offended  at  them,  and  would  scorn  to 
take  advantage  of  them  or  use  them  to  my  prejudice,  but  it  oc- 
curred to  him  that  some  civilian  .might,  and  he  therefore  cau- 
tioned me  to  be  more  guarded.  But  so  innocent  was  I  of  hav- 
ing said  anything  on  political  subjects  which  could  possibly  in- 
jure me  with  an  honorable  man,  that,  in  my  reply,  I  wrote  him 
that  all  I  had  said  I  would  not  hesitate  to  repeat,  even  before 
the  President,  if  he  desired  to  learn  my  views.  This  letter 
from  him,  standing  by  itself,  will  satisfy  the  most  skeptical  that 
my  political  opinions  had  not  offended  the  unfortunate  man,  nor 
caused  him  to  leave  my  tent. 

But  sometime  about  midnight,  perhaps  one  o'clock  in  the 
morning,  he  left  my  tent  "  in  a  huff"  to  sleep  elsewhere,  and  he 
labors  hard  to  connect  it  with  the  imaginary  toast  that  I  gave  to 
Major  WHITING.  As  Major  "WHITING  unhesitatingly  declares 
that  I  never  gave  any  such  toast,  it  is  evident  that  he  labors  un- 
der some  hallucination,  or  is  lending  himself  to  some  "  hell-born" 
scheme — borrowing  one  of  his  favorite  adjectives.  And  here, 


13 

perhaps,  it  will  be  proper  to  show  the  real  cause  of  this  "  much 
ado  about  nothing." 

On  the  evening  in  question,  I  had  unexpectedly  received  some 
Scotch  whisky,  and  as  some  friends  came  in  I  offered  them  a 
hot  punch,  and,  of  course,  gave,  to  my  guest  at  the  same  time. 
He  drank  cautiously,  but  as  officers  came  in,  at  different  times, 
he  drank  often,  and  by  midnight,  the  punch,  I  have  supposed, 
had  affected  his  mind  so  far  as  to  show  peculiarities  of  his  dis- 
position. I  had  taken  the  pains  to  explain  to  him  the  difficul- 
ties, the  causes  of  delay,  and  failure  of  the  Peninsular  Cam- 
paign. I  spoke  of  South  Mountain  and  Antietam  as  proofs  of 
Gen.  McCLELLAN's  abilities,  and  I  expressed  regret  that  at  the 
moment  the  General  was  leading  his  successful  Army  through 
Virginia,  and  had  expressed  his  expectation  in  four  or  five  days 
more  to  be  in  a  position  to  compel  the  enemy  to  fight  him  on  a 
field  of  his  own  choosing,  and  we  knew  the  Army  of  the  Poto- 
mac never  before  was  in  better  fighting  condition,  and  therefore 
we  all  felt  confident  of  great  results. — I  explained  to  him  that  it 
was  not  necessary  to  attack  the  Confederate  Army  behind  in- 
trenchments  at  Culpepper  C.  H.,  if  we  could  reach  the  Railroad 
from  Richmond  without  it :  the  supplies  from  Richmond  once 
cut  off,  the  intrenchments  would  be  of  little  value :  and  the 
Army  of  the  Potomac  once  between  Lee's  Army  and  Richmond 
would  have  great  advantages  in  its  favor — but  the  election  in 
New  York  having  turned  against  the  Administration,  it  was  fol- 
lowed by  the  removal  of  General  McCLELLAN,  and  all  our  pros- 
pects on  his  proposed  line  of  march  were  given  up  ;  for  the  new 
commander  adopted  a  different  line  and  plan  of  operations. 
Thus,  for  the  victories  we  anticipated,  we  had  now  to  mourn  over 
the  disasters  at  Fredericksburg.  I  thought  the  interference  of 
the  Administration  had  changed  certain  victory  into  disaster. 
I  deprecated  politics  when  it  was  allowed  to  interfere  with  the 
management  of  Armies  :  that  the  interference  had  brought  about 
heavy  losses  and  defeat  at  Fredericksburg,  and  the  Administra- 
tion were  in  this  light  responsible  for  the  losses  and  all  the  con- 
sequences which  should  follow  from  the  change.  But  Mr.  "Wells 
saw  that  this  view  would  not  inspire  the  people  with  confidence 


u 

in  what  he  called  "  the  government"  and  intimated  that  I  ought 
to  take  some  other  view,  "  for  it  is  the  duty  of  all  officers  to 
sustain  the  Government."     I  then  explained  to  him  the  differ- 
ence between   "  the   Government"  and  "  the  Administration." 
That  when  the  Administration  was  controlled  by  the  Constitu- 
tion and  the  Laws  of  Congress,  and  its  actions  regulated  by  pure 
Patriotism,  then  I  believed  every  officer  and  the  whole  country 
should  and  would  support  it.     But  I  left  it  to  him  to  say  if  the  re- 
moval of  McCLELLAN  was  from  Patriotic  or  from  Party  motives  ? 
And  his  reply  was  that  he  thought  I  was  a  "  little  "  disloyal.     I 
then  reminded  him  of  my  conduct  at  Fredericksburg,  to  let  my 
actions  speak  for  my  loyalty.     He  stood  by,  when  Brig.  Gen. 
HAUPT,  Eailroad  Engineer,  had  told  me  that  two  hundred  sol- 
diers and  his  carpenters,  while  the  firing  was  going  on  at  Fred- 
ericksburg, had  abandoned  their  work  at  the  E.  E.  Bridge,  and 
he  could  not  get  on  with  the  work.     I  then  volunteered  to  fur- 
nish him  with  one  hundred  men  of  General  Headquarters'  Guard 
—the  93d  N.  Y.  Vols. — if  General  BUKNSIDE  would  approve  of  it 
and  I  would  remain  with  them  and  guarantee  that  none  would 
quit,  nor  allow  his  workmen  to  quit,  merely  for  the  firing.     Yet, 
to  this  service,  I  received  for  answer  "  that  there  was  no  danger 
in  it."    Now,  as  he  and  I  had  been  that  day  in  Fredericksburg, 
and  each  was  careful  to  cross  the  pontoon  bridge  during  the  in- 
tervals between  the  enemy's  cannonading,  I  asked  him  "  Why 
he  had  not  crossed  the  pontoon  bridge  when  I  did  ?"     He  in- 
stantly flared  up  and  asked  "  Do  you  mean  to  say  that  I  was 
afraid  ?"  as  if  I  had  imputed  an  unmanly  fear  to  his  action,  and 
from  this  time  he  manifested  a  determinatiou  to  leave  me.     He 
asked  Major  WHITING  if  he  might  sleep  in  his  tent,  intimating 
that  I  was  disloyal,  although  he  had  never  before  met  Major 
WHITING,  who  was  at  a  loss  to  understand  his  conduct.    I  then 
offered  him  my  tent  to  himself,  saying  he  could  take  my  bed 
and  I  would  sleep  in  some  friend's  tent :  but  he  answered  that 
he  would  not  turn  me  out  of  my  tent.     I  then  offered  "  to  get 
him  a  tent  to  sleep  in,  with  some  Black  Eepublican."     But  in- 
stead of  appreciating  my  offer,  he  insisted  upon  sleeping  in  Ma- 
jor WHITING'S  tent,  without  being  invited,  and  packed  up  his  car- 


15 

pet  bag  to  accompany  him.     Upon  my  requesting  Major  WHI- 
TING to  take  him  along,  he  kindly  consented  to  do  so. 

Poor  fellow!  I  believed  then  that  the  punch  he  had  taken 
had  affected  his  brain,  and  I  dreaded  the  consequence,  for  it 
might  bring  back  a  serious  attack  of  his  old  infirmity,  which 
had  placed  him  under  the  charge  of  the  physicians  in  the  Penn- 
sylvania Hospital  for  the  Insane  at  Philadelphia,  for  some  three 
months,  the  year  previous.  I  saw  that  he  was  wild,  if  not  be- 
side himself,  but  I  did  not  dream  that  he  labored  under  hallu- 
cinations, and  could  forget  the  conversation  of  that  night.  The 
next  afternoon,  the  excitement  had  passed  off,  and  he  came  vol- 
untarily to  my  tent,  when  I  told  him  that  I  had  feared  that  his 
old  infirmity  had  returned ;  but  he  begged  me  not  to  say  any- 
thing about  the  previous  evening,  and  there  the  matter  dropped, 
he  going  off  to  York,  Pa.,  a  very  cordial  friend.  It  was  quite  a 
surprise  to  me  to  hear  him,  a  month  afterwards,  give  his  recol- 
lections of  that  night  in  the  extraordinary  manner  in  which  he 
presents  it.  He  writes : 


NAVY  YAED,  PHILADELPHIA,  ) 
January  16,  1863.          f 

Major  Holler : 

MY  DEAR  SDR:  I  should  have  replied  to  your  letter  before,  but  ever  since  my 
arrival  at  this  station  I  have  been  kept  very  busy,  and  when  night  comes,  I  fe«l 
too  tired  to  do  anything  but  smoke  and  chat  with  the  children ;  after  all  there  is 
nothing  like  one's  home,  which  you  have  doubtless  experienced  for  so  many 
years. 

Mrs. is  here  on  a  visit  for  the  purpose  of  procuring  some  little  com- 
forts for  her  brother,  whom  we  saw.  I  am  pleasantly  situated,  having  for  the 
first  time  in  my  naval  career,  a  Government  house  to  live  in,  but  which  I  was 
obliged  to  furnish  to  some  extent.  Were  it  not  that  I  have  been  away  a  year  in 
the  S.  A.  Squadron  and  for  the  sake  of  my  family,  I  would  prefer  going  to  Sea  in 
these  exciting  times,  although  my  naval  friends  tell  me  that  I  have  done  my 
share  ;  I  think  not,  for  I  believe  that  no  officer  can  do  too  much  to  assist  in  crush- 
ing out  this  sinful  rebellion. 

During  my  short  visit  to  Gen.  Franklin  with  whom  I  have  been  intimate  for 
many  years,  I  was  glad  to  see  that  he  was  thoroughly  Union  in  his  sentiments, 
and  had  a  horror  .of  anything  like  disloyalty  or  secession.  I  have  ever  enter- 
tained a  high  opinion  of  his  abilities  as  a  man  and  as  a  soldier.  The  sword 
which  will  be  presented  to  him  will  have  inscribed  upon  it  all  the  battles  he  has 
been  engaged  in.  [This  was  a  most  deliberate  falsehood,  for  there  was  no  sword.  ] 


16 

I  heard  from  others  in  the  camp  that  his  bravery  in  the  battle  of  Fredericksburg 
was  of  the  highest  order,  and  that  alone  entitles  him  to  the  distinguished  honor 
of  having  a  sword  given  him. 

You  mention  in  your  letter  that  anything  you  may  have  said  concerning  the 
manner  in  which  this  war  was  carried  on  you  would  not  hesitate  to  repeat.  [So 
far  as  my  statements  went,  I  would  not  hesitate  to  repeat  them,  but  what  he  here 
says  I  uttered,  the  reader  will  see  by  Maj.  WHITING'S  letter,  '  lis  false  in  spirit as  well 
as  in  letter.'']  At  least  I  judge  so.  Do  you  recollect  proposing  the  toast  to  Maj. 
WHITING  ?  and  which  was  the  occasion  of  my  leaving  your  tent.  "  Here's  to  a 
Southern  Confederacy,  and  a  Northern  one  during  the  Administration  of  Lincoln," 
and  another  expression  you  had  made  use  of  before,  in  charging  the  President 
with  loss  of  life  in  the  battle  of  Fredericksburg,  and  that  you  believed  "that  it 
was  the  intention  of  the  Administration  to  sacrifice  the  Army  of  the  Potomac  in 
the  neighborhood  of  Richmond.  [This  charge  he  voluntarily  abandons  in  his 
letter  to  Secretary  STANTON.]  If  these  are  your  sentiments  I  would  not  hesitate  to 
proclaim  them,  and  were  I  to  entertain  such,  I  should  resign  my  Commission.  I 
do  not  mention  these  matters  with  a  view  of  renewing  any  or  causing  unpleasant 
feeling,  but  merely  to  show  you  that  you  are  doing  yourself  an  injustice,  for  I 
cannot  believe  that  you  think  so,  [Here  he  admits  the  above  are  not  my  sentiments  !  ] 
otherwise  you  would  not  remain  in  the  Army.  Were  the  opinions  you  have  ex- 
pressed before  me  and  others  made  known,  it  would  be  exceedingly  prejudicial 
to  you.  In  these  tinges  it  is  the  duty  of  all  officers  to  sustain  the  Administration 
in  the  suppression  of  this  rebellion.  No  mid-way  course  can  be  taken. 

A  year  ago  I  was,  what  is  termed  a  pro-slavery  man,  but  I  saw  enough  while 
down  South  to  change  my  views  entirely,  for  I  regard  Slavery  as  a  curse  to  our 
Country,  and  the  cause  of  this  hell-born  rebellion.  [Yet  he  4B)  and  brought 
away  a  negro  and  has  his  services  now !  J 

I  believe  there  is  nothing  new  in  York  ;  I  have  no  affection  for  that  place,  as 
it  contains  a  strong  disloyal  element,  chiefly  confined  to  those  who  have  not 
shouldered  the  musket.  If  you  should  visit  the  city,  I  hope  you  will  let  me  know. 
I  regret  very  much  to  hear  of  the  accident  to  Capt  GUSHING  but  I  hope  ere  this 
he  has  entirely  recovered.  This  horseback  riding  I  have  always  considered  dan- 
gerous, I  therefore  never  mounted  a  horse  without  feeling  uncomfortable.  Noth- 
ing like  a  ship  after  all. 

That  Galveston  affair  we  all  deplore,  being  the  only  mishap  to  our  Navy 
since  the  breaking  out  of  the  rebellion.  We  lost  four  good  officers  by  the  pre- 
mature blowing  up  of  one  of  the  Steamers.  The  "Petapsco,"  a  new  Monitor 
was  here  two  weeks  ago.  I  regard  her  as  invulnerable.  She  carries  a  gun  weigh- 
ing forty-one  thousand  pounds,  and  throws  a  ball  of  450  Ibs.  service,  charge  of 
powder  35  Ibs.,  also  a  two-hundred  pound  rifle.  Altogether  Ae  is  a  most  for- 
midable vessel. 

Kind  regards  to  Maj.  WHITING.  Did  Lieut.  Spaulding  of  his  regiment  re- 
ceive the  horse  which  I  had  returned  by  one  of  Gen.  FKANKUN'S  orderlies  ?  Kind 
regards  to  Capt.  GIBSON  and  FBANKLIN,  should  you  meet  with  them.  Let  me 
hear  from  you,  and  believe  me  to  be 

Yours  sincerely, 

C.  H.  WELLS,  U.  S.  N. 


17 

As  Major  WHITING  was  a  disinterested  witness,  who  had 
seen  all  and  heard  all  that  was  said,  I  desired  him  to  write  a  let- 
ter to  Wells  on  purpose  to  remove  the  hallucination  under 
which  he  seemed  to  labor.  But  the  Major  was  in  Washington 
on  Court  martial  duty,  and  that  duty  generally  being  tempo- 
rary, I  expected  him  back  almost  daily,  but  before  he  returned, 
I  received  the  following  letter  : 

NAVY  YABD,         \ 
PHILADELPHIA,  February  17th,  1863.  f 

Major  Hatter: 

MY  DEAR  SIB  :  Since  I  wrote  you  in  reply  to  your  letter,  I  have  thought  so 
much  over  what  had  occurred  in  your  tent,  and  which  was  the  cause  of  my  leav- 
ing you,  that  I  cannot  see  why  I  should  not  report  yeur  disloyal  language  to  the 
Secretary  of  War,  painful  -as  it  may  be.  [This  expression  is  undoubtedly  used  to 
prepare  my  mind  for  the  closing  passage.  "No  one  can  doubt  my  loyalty,  and  I 
hope  you  will  give  me  the  credit  of  performing  my  duty  conscientiously."  Now 
it  has  come  to  my  knowledge,  -and  I  can  show  by  two  witnesses,  that  this  unfortu- 
nate man  has  spoken  of  an  officer  of  the  TJ.  S.  Navy,  high  in  rank,  as  having  a 
son  who  was  at  sea  with  the  South  Atlantic  Squadron,  and  this  son  was  in  cor- 
respondence with  the  Rebels  and  was  helping  them,  or  words  of  similar  import  ; 
and  when  he  was  asked  why  he  had  not  reported  the  case  to  the  Navy  Department, 
the  reply  was  :  "It  would  only  do  me  harm — it  would  bring  down  the  Commo- 
dore on  me,"  or  words  to  this  effect ;  showing  how  " conscientiously"  he  has  been 
performing  his  duty!]  but  in  these  times  when  we  are  engaged  in  a  deadly 
struggle  to  sustain  our  Government,  I  would  sacrifice  my  son. 

You  uttered  this  expression  in  my  presence,  "Here's  to  a  Northern  Confede- 
ration and  to  a  Southern  one,  while  Lincoln  is  President,"  which  you  gave  as  a 
toast  to  Major  Whiting  in  your  tent,  and  had  also  said  "  that  you  considered  the 
President  responsible  for  the  loss  of  life  at  the  battle  of  Fredericksburg. "  No 
one  can  doubt  rny  loyalty,  and,  I  hope  you  will  give  me  the  credit  of  performing 
my  duty  conscientiously. 

I  am  yours, 

C.  H.  WELLS, 

Lieut.  Commander,  U.  S.  N. 


Immediately  on  the  receipt  of  the  above  letter,  I  wrote  to 
him,  as  follows  : 

YOEK,  PENNA.,  February  18th,  1863. 
Lh'.nt.  Commander  Clark  H.  Wells,  U.  8.  N.,  Commanding  Navy  Yard,  Phila  : 

MY  DEAB  SIB  :  Your  letters  of  the  16th  of  January  and  17th  of  February,  are 
received,  and  contents  noticed. 

2 


18 

The  absence  of  Major  WHITING,  U.  S,  A.,  on  a  Court  Martial  at  the  city  of 
Washington,  prevented  my  laying  before  him  the  former  of  the  two  letters,  and 
getting  from  him  a  denial  of  the  statements  which  you  make,  and  then  replying 
to  yours.  I  shall  not  ask  you  to  take  my  own  statements.  Fortunately,  there 
was  a  witness  present  on  the  occasion  of  the  conversation  referred  to  in  your  let- 
ters, -who  saw  all,  heard  all,  and  knows  all  that  occurred. 

I  have  not  seen  him  since  the  receipt  of  your  letters,  and  I  think  when  called 
upon,  he  will  remove  the  hallucination  under  which  you  seem  to  labor. 

One  thing  I  remember,  and  can  hardly  think  that  you  have  forgotten  it.  I 
gave  a  toast,  and  only  one,  it  was  : 

"  THE  CONSTITUTION  AS  IT  is  :  THE  UNION  AS  IT  WAS!" 

If  this  is  disloyalty,  then  as  Patrick  Henry  says  :  "  Make  the  most  of  it!" 

In  the  frame  of  mind  in  which  you  have  written,  it  is  obvious  that  all  pre- 
vious relations,  however  agreeable,  are  ignored.  I  shall  not  trouble  you,  there-t 
fore,  with  an  account  of  your  friends,  or  the  on  dits  of  this  place. 

As  a  Mason  it  is  my  duty  to  respect  you  as  a  brother,  but  I  trust  you  will  so 
conduct  your  course  towards  all  brethren,  that  discord  may  not  be  charged  upon 
you. 

Fraternally  yours, 

G.  O.  HALLEK. 


He  became  -impatient  however,  and  on  the  4th  of  March  he 
forwarded  to  me  a  copy  of  his  letter  to  the  Secretary  of  War,  of 
March  3d,  1863,  copied  on  page  — .  As  soon  as  my  duties  per- 
mitted, I  wrote  to  him  the  subjoined  letter,  which  discharged 
the  matter  from  my  mind,  until  dismissed,  excepting  once,  when 
in  York,  I  proposed  to  some  masonic  friends  to  have  this  mat- 
ter investigated,  and  was  strongly  advised  against  it. 

CAMP  NEAR  FALMOUTH,  VA.,      [ 
March  20th,  1863.          j 

C.  II.  Wells,  Lieut.  Commander,  U.  8.  N.-: 

MY  DEAR  Snt :  Your  letter  of  March  4th,  enclosing  a  copy  of  your  letter  to 
the  Hon.  E.  M.  STANTON,  Secretary  of  War,  reporting  me  "for  uttering'disloyal 
sentiments  in  my  [your]  presence "  is  received.  I  have  now  waited  over  4wo 
weeks  to  learn  what  course  the  War  Department  would  pursue  on  your  state- 
ments— perhaps  you  can  tell.  They  have  not  even  asked  for  an  application. 

It  is  due  to  myself  to  say,  that  in  passing  through  Washington,  on  the  24th 
of  February,  I  called  on  Major  WOTTING  and  showed  him  your  letters,  and  a  copy 
of  mine  to  you  of  February  19th^in  which  I  promised  or  assumed  that  he  wonld 
make  a  statement  which  I  had  promised  to  forward  to  you.  He  then  offered  to 
write  one,  and  as  I  would  leave  next  morning  too  early  to  get  it,  he  was  to  for- 
ward it  to  me  here.  He  returned  on  the  5th  inst.,  and  on  the  Gth  called  at  my 
tent  and  stated  that  b.e  had  forgotten  to  write.  Having  stated  to  you  rnasonically 


19        . 

that  I  thought  when  he  was  called  upon,  he  would  give  you  a  statement  which 
would  remove  the  hallucination  under  which  you  seem  to  labor.  I  was  entitled 
as  a  Mason  to  a  hearing  ;  but  your  haste  indicates  rather  an  over-zealous  desire 
to  open  a  correspondence  with  the  Honorable  Secretary  of  War,  than  conform  to 
obligations  and  preserve  your  honor  and  character  from  a  foul  blot.  I  take  it 
for  granted  that  the  Secretary  of  War  will  refer  your  letter  to  Major  WHITING,  and 
I  trust  will  allow  me  to  be  heard  in  the  case.  I  feel  safer  in  his  hands  than,  I  am 
sorry  to  say,  I  would  in  yours,  and  the  day  will  come,  I  trust,  when  I  can  have 
this  matter  investigated  by  the  Masonic  Lodge  in  York,  and  your  conduct  sifted 
and  stamped  as  it  deserves. 

In  your  letter  of  Feb.  20th,  you  write,  "I  shall  not  dwell  upon  personal  al- 
lusions as  the  matter  has,  in  my  opinion,  taken  an  official  character. "  This'may 
be  your  opinion,  but  the  society  in  which  I  have  been  schooled  for  the  last  twen- 
ty-three years  does  not  allow  an  officer  or  gentleman  to  accept  the  hospitalities 
of  another  as  a  friend  and  then  go  off  and  comment  on  what  he  has  seen  or  heard 
to  that  friend's  prejudice  :  much  less  can  he  cover  hinftelf  with  his  official  char- 
acter when  he  is  not  there  in  his  official  capacity.  But  aside  from  the  violations 
of  hospitality  and  courtesy,  there  is  a  question  of  veracity  in  your  statements. 

I  have  heretofore  abstained  from  commenting  on  your  conduct  and  your  lec- 
tures to  me,  in  your  letters,  from  motives  of  delicacy.  I  had  no  wish  to  lend  my- 
self in  any  way  to  produce  an  open  rupture  of  our  social  relations.  You  must  do 
me  the  justice  to  admit  in  your  heart,  that  you  have  thrust  this  issue  upon  me. 
You  have  repeatedly  thrust  at  me  your  charges  of  disloyalty,  after  I  told  you  that 
I  would  not  ask  you  to  take  iny  own  statements,  but  agreed  to  leave  it  to  one  who 
saw  all,  heard  all,  and  knew  all  that  took  place.  You  will  yet  learn  that  your 
statement  to  the  Honorable  Secretary  of  War  is  false. 

It  is  now  my  turn  t'o  lecture  you  a  little  and  hold  up  to  your  gaze  a  few  reflec- 
tions of  your  own,  for  I  hold  that  the  old  truism  "  Actions  speak  louder  than 
words,''  is  a  self-evident  fact,  and  by  this  test  I  am  prepared  to  compare  our  Pa- 
triotism. 

You  saw  me  in  Fredericksburg  hasten  to  the  wounded  man  and  aiding  there. 
You  know  that  I  volunteered,  (when  my  duties  excused  me  from  service  which 
might  expose  niy  person  to  danger, )  to  furnish  one  hundred  men  of  my  com- 
mand and  stay  with  them  to  fix  the  R.  E.  Bridge,  because  two  hundred  men  had 
that  day  fled  from  that  duty.  -You  know  too  that  I  am  in  the  field  and  that  Gen- 
erals BUBNSEDE  and  HOOKEB  have  retained  me  in  my  old  position  under  Gen. 
McCiiEiiLAN,  and  they  at  least  are  satisfied  with  my  loyalty  and  the  discharge  of 
my  duties. 

How  is  it  with  you  ?  Your  patriotism  stands  mostly  on  paper.  In  your  let- 
ter of  January  IGth  you  write  :  "  that  I  [you]  had  been  away  a  year."  [Now think 
of  it,  you  were  l'away  a  year  /"  Why,  thousands  of  volunteers  left  their  homes, 
with-business  unsettled,  and  have  been  away  two  years  /]  and  for  the  sake  of  my 
[your]  family  [think,  too,  you  have  said  you  are  ready  "to  sacrifice  your  son," 
yet  your  family  prevents  you  doing  your  duty,  for  you  say]  I  [you]  would  prefer 
<joinq  to  sea  in  these  excitinrj  times,  although  my  naval  -friends  tell  me  tJiat  I  have  done 


20 

my  share.  I  THINK  NOT,  for  I  believe  that  no  officer  can  do  too  much  to  assist  in  crush- 
ing out  this  sinful  rebellion."  Here  then,  family  considerations  are  acknowledged  to 
have  crushed  out  your  patriotism,  for  you  think  that  you  have  not  done  your  share 
— that  you  cannot  do  too  much.  While  you  here  admit  that  loyalty  and  patriot- 
ism require  your  services  at  sea,  yet  you  have  sought  at  the  Navy  Department 
for  the  order  placing  you  in  a  peaceful  station. ,  This  is  your  boasted  loyalty,  and 
in  your  letter  of  February  17,  you  say:  "  no  one  can  doubt  my  [your]  loyalty.'"  I 
have  found,  by  experience,  that  the  most  sanctimonious  members  of  a  church — 
those  who  intrude  their  religious  feelings  on  all  around  them — are  the  most 
hypocritical,  and  have  motives  for  displaying  their  outward  piety.  The  truly 
pious  man  retires  to  the  inner  closet  and  there  offers  up  his  devotions.  He  lets 
his  conduct  speak  of  his  moral  qualities.  So  in  all  relations,  I  look  at  a  man's 
actions,  not  at  his  professions  and  boastings,  and  make  up  my  mind.  In  your 
letter  of  February  17,  written  from  the  quiet  Navy  Yard  at  Philadelphia,  your 
patriotism  reaches  the  cl^iax.  You  say  :  "  When  WE  are  engaged  in  a  deadly 
struggle  to  sustain  [I  suppose  you  unintentionally  omitted  the  words  "the  constitu- 
tion o/ '"]  our  government,  I  would  sacrifice  my  son."  Had  this  passage  been  pre- 
pared at  sea,  while  devoting  your  life  as  a  sacrifice,  if  necessary,  to  your  bleeding 
country,  it  might  pass  for  noble  patriotism,  [although  repugnant  to  our  animal 
instincts,  and  evincing  a  most  unnatural  frame  of  mind,  ]  but,  while  you  take 
such  good  care  of  your  own  life,  it  sounds  very  much  like  buncombe  ! 

Before  that  GOD,  whom  you  profess  to  worship — who  knows  our  hearts — and 
who  understands  our  motives — I  can  fearlessly  submit  my  loyalty  and  yours,  and 
ask  him  to  judge  between  us. 

There  are  several  passages  in  yolir  letters,  which  might  be  noticed  in  addi- 
tion to  those  above.     But  enough  of  this.     I  trust  that  I  may  be  able  soon  to  get 
to  York,  and  there  I  can  get  an  investigation  which  will  decide  how  far  your 
charges  of  disloyalty  go,  and  disinterested  brethren  judge  between  us. 
Very  respectfully,  your  obedient  servant, 

G.  O.  HALLEK, 

Major  7th  Infantry. 


THE  APPLICATION  FOR  A  COURT  OF  INQUIRY. 

\ 

The  following  is  the  letter  first  submitted  to  the  Secretary  of 
War,  and  the  Reader  will  perceive,  after  perusing  the  evidence 
before  him  of  my  loyalty,  and  of  my  arduous  services,  that  my 
case  is  presented  in  a  calm  and  argumentative  manner,  designed 
to  impress  the  Secretary  of  War  with  its  truthfulness,  then  ask 
as  a  matter  of  sheer  justice  to  myself,  for  an  official  investiga- 
tion, believing  that  it  is  a  right,  which  cannot  be  questioned,  that 
an  Officer  should  have  a  thorough  investigation  into  any  charges, 


21 

if  he  declares  them  to  be  untrue.  An  Officer's  character  and 
honor  are  more  to  him  than  his  life,  or  wealth,  and  if  they  can 
be  arbitrarily  taken  from  him,  as  in  my  case,  the  Officers  of  the 
Army  must  soon,  indeed,  become  mere  instruments  of  the  Secre- 
tary to  enforce  his  will,  whether  in  support  of  Law  or  not.  The 
application  is  as  follows  : 

YOKE,  PA.,  August  8th,  1863. 

• 

Hon.  Edwin  M.  Stanton,  Secretary  of  War. 

SIR  :  On  the  29th  ult.,  I  received  a  copy  of  Special  Orders 
No.  331,  which  informed  me  that,  "  by  direction  of  the  Presi- 
dent "I  was  "  dismissed  the  service  of  the  United  States  for 
disloyal  conduct  and  the  utterance  of  disloyal  sentiments." 

By  this  order  I  am  deprived  of  the  profession  .for  which  my 
education  and  life  long  habits  have  fitted  me,  and  I  am  driven 
from  it,  covered  with  whatever  of  infamy  the  recorded  condem- 
nation of  the  highest  authority  can  bring  on  my  character. 
The  statements  which  brought  this  about,  being  untrue,  I  hope 
it  is  not  too  late  to  get  justice.  At  all  events,  I  take  the  liberty 
to  give  you  a  true  statement  of  my  case,  which,  perhaps,  may 
serve  me  in  place  of  that  regular  defence  which  I  have  had  no 
opportunity  to  make.  Some  vindication  of  myself  I  certainly 
owe  to  my  family  and  my  friends. 

Undoubtedly  an  order  which  may  consign  an  officer  to  ruin 
and  disgrace,  ought  to  be  placed  on  specific  and  intelligible 
grounds.  " Disloyal  conduct "  and  "disloyal  sentiments"  are 
phrases  unknown  to  any  law  civil  or  military,  and  have  come 
into  fashion  of  late,  as  mere  party  catchwords,  signifying  any- 
thing or  nothing,  according  to  the  notions  of  the  persons  who 
use  them. 

That  I  am  or  have  ever  been  really  disloyal  in  word,  thought, 
or  deed,  is  utterly  and  nakedly  false.  From  the  time  I  first  en- 
tered the  army,  nearly  twenty-four  years  ago,  I  have  been  true 
and  faithful  to  my  country,  her  government,  her  constitution 
and  her  laws.  And  this  avertment  never  has  been,  and  never 
will  be  controverted  by  the  testimony  of  any  man  who  is  honest 


22 

and  sane.  My  services  vouch  for  this.  I  was  in  much  of  the 
Florida  war  :  through  all  the  Mexican  war,  and  in  most  of  the 
battles  from  PALO  ALTO  to  EL  MOLING  DEL  BEY  and  CAPTURE  OP 
THE  CITY  OP  MEXICO  inclusive.  •  I  was  engaged  in  several  Indian 
Wars  on  the  Pacific  Coast  and  elsewhere,  and  in  this  Bebellion 
from  its  commencement  until  notified  of  my  dismissal.  I  have 
never  failed  in  the  performance  of  any  duty  however  difficult  or 
dangerous,  and  I  have  never  been  charged  with  a  single  act  of 
insubordination.  I  think  I  can  say  without  boasting  that  I 
have  enjoyed  far  beyond  many  officers  the  friendship  of  my 
associates  and  the  approbation  of  my  superiors  in  the  service. 
The  official  reports  on  file  in  your  Department,  and  printed  in 
the  Congressional  Documents,  will  not  only  show  this,  but  will 
prove  that  my  behavior  in  every  important  battle,  won  from  the 
Commanding  Officers,  expressions  of  the  highest  praise.  I 
speak  with  the  pride  which  becomes  a  soldier,  when  I  say  that 
my  record  is  without  stain. 

Almost  contemporaneously  with  the  base  accusations  of 
Wells,  MAJOR  GENERAL  BURNSIDE  was  writing  the  warmest  eulo- 
gium  on  my  fidelity  to  the  cause  of  the  Union  :  and  only  a  few 
days  before  my  dismissal,  MAJOR  GENERAL  COUCH  gave  me  the 
strongest  evidence  of  his  confidence,  and  of  the  high  apprecia- 
tion in  which  he  held  what  he  was  pleased  to  call  "  the  invalua- 
ble assistance"  I  had  rendered  him,  in  retarding  the  advance  of 
the  enemy  in  their  march  towards  Philadelphia. 

I  am  not  now,  I  have  never  been,  and  it  is  likely  I  never  will 
be  a  Political!.  That  is  not  my  trade  !  I  have  interfered  in  no 
canvass,  have  written  nothing  for  newspapers,  and  spoken  at  no 
public  meetings.  But  I  have  held  opinions  on  Public  Affairs 
which,  as  they  do  not  change  when  the  civil  administration 
changes,  are  sometimes  favorable  and  sometimes  unfavorable  to 
the  party  in  power.  To  these  opinions,  I  have  occasionally,  in 
the  freedom  of  private  conversation,  given  moderate,  fair,  and 
inoffensive  expression.  This  non-intervention  in  the  political  • 
disputes  of  the  people  is  the  custom  of  service  among  the  best 
officers  of  the  Begular  Army,  and  I  have  followed  it  because  it 
has  0ie  approbation  of  my  judgment  and  my  conscience :  and 


23 

this  freedom  of  opinion  has  been  conceded  to  officers  of  the 
Army  from  the  foundation  of  this  Republic,  and  never  has  been 
questioned  until  now. 

One  Clark  H.  Wdls,  a  Lieutenant  Commander  in  the  U.  S. 
Navy,  had  a  conversation  with  Major  CHARLES  J.  WHITING,  2nd 
U.  S.  Cavalry,  and  myself,  on  or  about  the  17th  December, 
1862,  (over  seven  months  ago,)  at  my  tent,  on  the  Rappahan- 
nock,  in  which  politics  were  mentioned,  and  it  is  upon  his  false 
and  perverted  statements  of  that  private  conversation  that  my 
dismissal  is  grounded.  Those  statements  were  referred  to  some 
subordinate  in  your  office,  and  upon  those  alone  I  was  found 
guilty  of  disloyalty,  reported  for  dismissal,  and  actually  dis- 
missed. I  now  appeal  to  your  sense  of  justice  and  ask 
you  whether  that  is  the  fair  play  to  which  an  officer  of  twenty 
four  years'  service,  with  an  unblemished  record,  is  entitled  ? 
Who,  in  the  army  is  safe,  if  the  War  Department  opens  its  ear 
to  the  base  whispers  of  every  paltry  spy,  who  treacherously 
takes  advantage  of  an  officer's  hospitality  and  becomes  an  in- 
former to  curry  favor  with  the  dispensers  of  patronage  ?  Apart 
from  the  individual  wrong  which  such  a  practice  must  produce, 
can  anything  be  better  calculated  to  demoralize  the  Army  and 
bring  the  service,  as  well  as  the  Government  itself,  into  dis- 
repute? 

Conversations  are  proverbially  unreliable  as  evidence.  They 
are  so  easily  misunderstood,  and  so  difficult  to  remember  that 
there  is  not  one  instance  in  many  thousands  where  the  casual 
talk  of  a  man  can  be  reproduced  with  accuracy  even  by  respect- 
able witnesses.  Nay,  where  is  the  man  who  can  repeat  exactly 
what  he  himself  has  said  but  yesterday  ?  If  conversations  are 
of  small  account  when  detailed  with  all  possible  fairness,  they 
become  contemptible  when  tattled  by  a  man  of  weak  under- 
standing and  malicious  heart. 

I  here  aver  that  I  never  uttered  the  words  imputed  to  me  by 
Wells,  nor  any  words  of  similar  import,  either  at  the  time  he  re- 
fers to,  or  at  any  other  time  in  my  life.  He  says  I  drank  to  a 
Southern  Confederacy  during  this  Administration.  This  is 
merely  and  simply  false.  I  can  prove  my  denial  to  be  true  by 


24 

the  direct  testimony  of  MAJOR  WHITING,  (before  mentioned,)  a 
gentleman  whose  honor  and  veracity  no  one  who  knows  him 
will  doubt.  The  only  toast  given  by  me  on  that  occasion  was 
this :  "Here's  to  the  Constitution  as  it  is,  and  the  Union  as  it 
was!"  which  I  thought  then  and  think  now,  expresses  a  senti- 
ment perfectly  patriotic  and  most  purely  loyal. 

Why  did  ME.  WELLS  make  this  false  statement  ?  Let  me  tell 
you.  The  man  is  %razy.  Yes  :  the  witness  upon  whose  ex-parte 
statements  your  department  has  endeavored  to  bring  ruin  to  me 
and  my  family  is  a  lunatic  !  It  was  only  on/fche  llth  of  October, 
1861,  that  he  was  released  from  the  Pennsylvania  Hospital  for 
the  Insane  atlPhiladelphia,  and  the  act  was  accompanied  by  the 
written  regret  of  the  Medical  pfficer  in  charge,  at  seeing  him 
leave  before  he  was  entirely  well.  I  have  known  him  for  a  long 
time ;  on  my  return  to  Camp,  near  Falmouth,  Ya.,  from  York, 
Pa.,  he  asked  to  accompany  me  to  see  an  intimate  friend. 
Thinking  him  harmless,  I  did  not  refuse  :  on  the  contrary, 
shared  with  him  my  tent  and  table,  until  he  found  his  friend. 
He  was  there  not  merely  as  my  guest,  but  a  self-invited  guest, 
and  under  the  greater  obligations  to  respect  the  hospitality. 

On  the  occasion  to  which  his.  statements  refer,  he  drank  some 
punch,  not  excessively  but  enough  to  inflame  his  weak  brain 
and  aggravate  his  mental  disease,  which  gradually  irritated  his 
morbid  temper,  and  fixed  his  malice  upon  myself.*  He  imagined 
that  I  had  insinuated  an  unmanly  fear  on  This  part  in  crossing 
the  Eappahannock  river,  during  the  firing  of  the  enemy.  He 
asked  MAJOR  WHITING,  whom*he  had  met  for  the  first  time,  to 
let  him  (Wells)  'sleep  in  his  (Whiting's)  tent,  and  insisted  upon 
doing  so  while  Major  WHITING  was  advising  him  against  it. 
It  was  in  this  manner  I  offered  to  find  him  a  tent  to  sleep  in 
where  he  would  be  with  a  Black  Eepublican — not  as  he  says  I 
did.  Although  the  moment  before,  he  had  denounced  Southern 
chivalry,  and  their  institution  of  Slavery  as  a  wrong  and  a  curse, 
he  became  particularly  incensed  at  this  offer  and  invited  himself 
into  a  stranger's  tent.  The  next  day,  of  his  own  accord,  he 
came  to  my  tent  and  begged  me  to  say  nothing  more  about  the 
matter.  His  conduct  and  language  for  a  long  time  afterwards 


25 

did  not  indicate  that  the  fancies  excited  by  the  punch  had 
passed  into  settled  hallucinations.  On  the  contrary,  when  he 
left  the  Camp  and  returned  to  York  where  my  family  lived,  he 
saw  them,  told  them  all  about  me,  wrote  an  account  of  their 
health,  and  even  cautioned  me  not  to  speak  unguardedly  on  po- 
litical subjects  "  lest  sortie  civilian  might  take  advantage  of  it  to 
injure  me.  When  he  wrote  me  at  a  still  later  period  that  he  in- 
tended to  accuse  me  of  disloyalty  for  toasting  the  Southern 
Confederacy,  I  did  my  best  to  deter  him  until  I  could  convince 
him,  through  Major  WHITING,  that  he  was  in  error.  I  knew  he 
was  not  a  responsible  creature  and  I  could  feel  no  enmity  to- 
wards him.  But  all  my  efforts  to  reason  with  him  only  strength- 
ened his  mental  delusion,  and  intensified  the  insane  malignity 
with  which  he  had  come  to  regard  me. 

MB.  WELLS  is  not  without  that  cunning  which  usually  accom- 
panies madness.  Since  his  release  from  the  Lunatic  Asylum, 
he  has  taken  all  occasions,  in  season  and  out  of  season,  to  make 
his  devotion  to  the  administration  conspicuous.  But  this  is  all 
feigned,  for,  if  what  he  said  when  the  war  began  is  any  indica- 
tion of  his  mind,  he  must  be  a  confirmed  secessionist.  He 
pushes  his  fortune  and  tries  to  win  promotion  by  threatening 
men  with  false  accusations — always  where  he  thinks  it  is  his  in- 
terest to  do  so — and  several  persons  (among  them  his  near  rela- 
tions) have  been  put  in  serious  peril  by  his  machinations.  Thus 
far  he  has  been  remarkably  successful.  It  is  a  fact  that  this 
Lunatic,  so  recently  from  the  mad  house,  and  seemingly  unfit  to 
run  at  large,  has  been  very  recently  appointed  the  Commandant 
of  the  Navy  Yard  at  Philadelphia. 

When  I  was  informed  by  Mr.  Wells  himself  that  he  had  made 
this  accusation,  I  did  not  think  it  necessary  to  send  in  a  defense 
for  I  had  faith  in  the  government  of  the  Country  which  I  had 
served  so  long,  and  I  believed  that  before  any  action  would  be 
taken  against  me,  I  would  be  called  upon  for  an  explanation.  I 
certainly  had  no  fear  that  the  War  Department  would  proceed 
on  the  unsupported  statement  of  a  crazy  man,  when  it  was 
known  that  there  was  a  sane  witness  who  could  tell  all  about  it 
I  however  consulted  friends  and  every  one  advised  me  that  I, 


26 

should  not  notice  the  allegations  nor  make  any  exposure  of  my 
accuser  until  it  became  absolutely  necessary.  I  could  not  fore- 
see that  the  necessity  might  exist  without  my  knowing  it. 

I  have  made  no  assertions  heie  which  I  cannot  prove  if  an  op- 
portunity be  given  me,  either  by  documentary  or  oral  evidence. 
The  letters,  I  refer  to,  are  in  my  possession,  the  official  reports 
are  on  file,  and  the  witnesses  will  be  forthcoming. 

I  do  not  suppose  that  either  you  or  the  President  understood 
the  nature  of  my  case.  Your  action  was  grounded  on  the  re- 
port laid  before  you,  and  I  now.respectfully  request  of  you  the 
privilege  of  proving  before  a  Court  of  Inquiry,  or  properly  au- 
thorized Court,  that  the  report  was  made  upon  the  false  testi- 
mony of  an  incompetent  and  irresponsible  witness,  taken  in  a 
corner  behind  my  back,  and  without  the  privilege  to  cross-ex- 
amine. With  these  facts  before  you,  I  trust  that,  as  an  act  of 
sheer  justice  to  myself,  an  investigation  will  be  ordered.  If  I 
shall  succeed  in  this  I  will  leave  the  rest  with  the  utmost  confi- 
dence in  your  hands. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be,  very  respectfully, 
Your  obedient  Servant, 

GRANYILLE  O.  HALLEE, 

(late  Major  7th  Infantry.) 


27 


MEMOIR  OF  MILITARY  SERVICES 

OP 

MAJOR  GRANVILLE  0.  HALLER, 

U.    S.    ARMY. 


I  was  an  applicant  for  the  appointment  of  Cadet  in  the  Mili- 
tary Academy  at  West  Point,  in  1839,  but  having  turned  my 
twentieth  year,  I  received  an  invitation  to  appear  before  a  Mili- 
tary board,  which  convened  in  the  City  of  Washington,  to  ex- 
amine the  qualifications  of  young  men  who  desired  to  be  commis- 
sioned as  Officers  ;  and  having  passed  a  satisfactory  examination, 
I  received  from  PRESIDENT  MARTIN  VAN  BUREN,  through  the  HON. 
JOEL  R.  POINSETT,  Secretary  of  War,  a  Commission  with  the 
rank  of  Second  Lieutenant  in  the  4th.  Regiment  of  Infantry, 
from  the  17th  day  of  November,  1839.  I  had  served  in  the 
Army,  consequently,  at  the  date  of  my  dismissal,  twenty-three, 
years,  eight  months,  and  eight  days. 

In  1840, 1  joined  my  Regiment  at  Fort  Gibson,  a  very  sickly 
post,  in  the  Cherokee  Nation  of  Indians. 


THE  FLORIDA  WAR. 

In  1841,  my  Regiment  entered  Florida  the  second  time.  My 
company  formed  part  of  MAJOR  BELKNAP'S  column  which  explor- 
ed and  scouted  the  Big  Cypress  Swamp.  In  this  expedition  all 
the  Officers  and  Men  had  to  carry  knapsacks,  as  the  country 


28 

was  impracticable  for  horses  or  mules.  Each  one  carried  his 
change  of  clothing,  blankets,  and  seven  days'  rations,  and  had 
to  wade  daily  in  water  from  ankle  to  waist  deep,  but  mostly 
about  twelve  inches  deep^— in  stretches  of  usually  eight  or  ten 
miles — in  the  cold  weather  of  December.  I  find  honorable 
mention  of  my  name,  in  this  field,  in  SPBAGUE'S  HISTORY  OF  T^IE 
FLORIDA  WAR— pages  360  to  376.  On  the  20th  December  1841, 
the  Indians  in  this  swamp  fired  upon  our  column  while  in  water 
three  feet  deep,  killing  several  men. 

In  1842,  as  Acting  Adjutant,  of  my  Regiment,  I  served  with 
the  expedition  under  COL.  WORTH  which  scouted  the  Wahoo 
Swamp,  then  crossed  to  the  Palalikaha  river,  where  his  troops 
surprised  HALLECK  TUSTENUGGE  in  his  camp  with  all  of  the  wo- 
men and  children  of  the  tribe  about  him,  and  obliged  him  to 
fight,  to  give  time  to  the  non-combatants  to  escape.  The  lodges, 
clothing  and  dried  meats,  etc.  fell  into  our  hands,  after  a  sharp 
skirmish,  in  which  they  had  several  warriors  wounded.  This 
misfortune  obliged  Halleck  to  sue  for  peace,  which  was  soon  fol- 
lowed by  the  suspension  of  Indian  hostilities.  The  Regiment 
was  then  sent  to  Jefferson  Barracks,  Missouri. 

In  1844,  my  Eegiment  was  ordered  into  Louisiana  and  en- 
camped near  Nachetoches,  on  the  borders  of  Texas,  as  part  of 
the  "Army  of  Observation,"  as  Mexico  had  threatened  Texas 
with  invasion  on  account  of  her  negotiating  terms  of  annexation 
with  the  United  States. 

In  1845,  the  3d  and  4th  Eegiments  of  Infantry  became  the 
"  Army  of  Occupation"  and  took  possession  of  St.  Joseph's  Is- 
land and  Corpus  Christi,  Texas.  I  was  here  appointed  •'  Brig- 
ade Major"  of  the  3d  Brigade,  a  title  now  obsolete,  as  the  duty 
is  performed  by  the  Assistant  Adjutant  General. 


THE    MEXICAN    WAR. 

In  1846,  the  "Army  of  Occupation"  marched  to  the  Eio  Grande 
and  encamped  opposite  Matamoros.  I  was  here  appointed  the 
Commissary  of  3d  Brigade.  At  Point  Isabella  I  was  ordered 


29 

/ 

to  receive  and  receipt  for  all  the  subsistence  stores,  winch  the 
train  of  wagons  would  be  able  to  carry  to  Fort  Brown.  Return- 
ing,  the  enemy  met  us  at  PALO  ALTO,  on  the  8th  of  May,  and 
disputed  our  passage,  but  had  to  fall  back :  on  the  9th  the 
enemy  held  a  stronger  position,  and  fought  the  battle  of  KESACA 
DE  LA  PALMA,  and  sustained  heavy  losses,  and  defeat.  A  large 
quantity  of  their  subsistence  stores,  was  captured,  and  placed  in 
my  charge.  On  the  field,  I  acted  as  an  Aid-de-Camp  to  Lt.  CoL 
JOHN  GARLAND,  4th  Infantry,  Commanding  the  3d  Brigade,  and 
in  his  report  of  those  actions,  he  has  expressed  his  indebtedness 
to  me  for  valuable  assistance. 

When  the  Army  marched  to  Monterey,  in  addition  to  the  du- 
ties of  Commissary  of  3d  Brigade,  I  was  charged  with  the  duties 
of  Quarter-master  and  Commissary  to  Gen.  TWIGGS'  Division. 
Immediately  on  our  arrival  before  Monterey,  I  was  ordered  to 
take  charge  of  all  the  subsistance  that  had  been  brought  to  that 
place,  with  instructions  to  be  sparing  in  the  issues,  and  by  judi- 
cious distributions,  protracted  the  subsistance  until  fresh  sup- 
plies were  received.  I  was  kept  on  Commissary  duty  until  Gen. 
WORTH'S  Division  was  withdrawn  from  Saltillo,  to  join  Gen. 
SCOTT'S  column.  Before  embarking  for  Yera  Cruz,  Gen.  WORTH 
directed  Company  Commanders,  who  were  also  doing  Staff  duty, 
to  select  one  of  the  two  duties  which  they  preferred,  and  surrender 
the  other.  I  thereupon  retained  command  of  my  Company,  and 
turned  over  my  Staff  duty  to  Lieut.  GRANT,  of  my  Regiment,  now 
the  distinguished  MAJOR  GENERAL  GRANT. 

At  VERA  CRUZ,  Gen.  WORTH'S  Division  was  charged  with  the 
construction  of  certain  trenches,  and  my  Regiment  worked  both 
night  and  day,  then  furnished  guards  for  them.  Our  labors 
were  incessant  until  the  City  capitulated. 

At  CERRO  GORDO,  my  Regiment  was  part  of  the  Reserv^  but 
witnessed  and  participated  in  the  success  of  that  day. 

The  CASTLE  or  PEROTE  and  the  CITY  OF  PUEBLA  fell  without  a 
blow,  but  the  4th  Infantry  formed  part  of  the  column  sent  to 
reduce  those  places. 

In  the  Valley  of  Mexico,  my  Regiment  participated  in  all  the 
battles.  At  EL  MOLTNO  DEL  REY,  I  was  one  of  the  "Storming 


30 

Party,"  being  selected  as  one  of  the  officers  to  bring  on  the  as- 
sault. In  the  CAPTUKE  OF  THE  CITY  OF  MEXICO,  our  last  blow,  my 
conduct  seems  to  have  met  the  decided  approbation  of  my  Su- 
perior Officers,  and  I  may  be  pardoned,  I  trust,  for  presenting 
extracts  from  Official  reports  in  regard  to  my  services. 


Extracts  from  reports  of  Commanding   Officers,  in  relation  to  the  conduct  of  GRAN- 
VELLE  OWEN  BAILEE  Major  1th  Infantry,  in  THE  WAK  WITH  MEXICO,  (then  a 
Lieutenant  of  the  4th  Regiment  of  Infantry,}  extracted  from  THE  EX- 
ECUTIVE DOCUMENTS,  No.  1 ;  30th  Congress,  1st  Session  : 
read  December  7th,  1847,  and  published  by 
the  SENATE,  to  wit : 

From  Gen.  WORTH'S  report,  speaking  of  THE  CAPTURE  OF  THE  CITY  OF  MEXICO,  and 
dated  at  '  'Headquarters,  1st  Division,  City  of  Mexico,  September  16th  1847. " 
[See  page  394.] 

"  I  have  again  to  make  acknowledgements  "to  *  * 

S.  SMITH,  HALLER,  and  GRANT,  4th  Infantry,  especially;" 

AGAIN: 

From  Lieut.  Gus.  W.  SMITH'S  report  while  advancing  towards  the  GARITA  DE  SAN 
COSME,  one  of  the  gates  of  the  City,  dated  at  "  Engineer  Quarters,  City  of 
Mexico,  September  16th,  1847  [See  Page  168,  appendix.] 

«  *  .#  *  Lieutenants  HALLER  and  JUDAH,  of  the  4th  In- 
fantry, and  Lieutenant  PICKETT,  of  the  8th,  who  were  in 
"  advance,  gave  me  what  information  they  had  already  acquired, 
"  and  rendered  efficient  aid  in  conducting  the  operations."  *  * 

AGAIN: 

From  BREVET  Col.  JOHN  GARLAND'S  report  of  THE  CAPTURE  OF  THE  CITY,  dated  at 
"Headquarters  1st.  Brigade,  1st  Division,  Mexico,  September  16th,  1847." 
."  [gJP  Appendix,  Pages  170  and  171." 

"  *  *  *• I  must  not  omit  to  call  the  attention  of  the 
"  General  to  Lieutenant  HALLER,  of  the  4th  Infantry,  who  gave 
"  evidence  of  courage  and  good  conduct  ;  his  efforts  were  untiring 
"  and  crowned  with  good  results ;  and,  also,  to  Lieutenant 


31 

"  GRANT,  of  the  same  Regiment,  etc." 
AGAIN: 

From  Major  FBANCIS  LEE'S  report  of  THE  CAP-TUBE  OF  THE  CITY,  dated  at  "  Head- 
quarters Fourth  Infantry,  City  of  Mexico,  September  16th,  1847".  [See  Appen- 
dix, Page  176. 

"*  *  *  I  detached  Lieutenants  HALLEK  and  JUDAH, 
"with  A  and  C  Companies,  to  support  Major  BUCHANAN  ;  and, 
"  by  his  orders,  they  were  advanced  on  the  left  of  the  road, 
"through  and  over  the  houses  towards  the  Garita/' 

"  *  *  *  Lieutenant  HALLER,  with  Company  C.  had  been 
"  previously  detached  to  another  portion  of  the  City  on  similar 
"  duty,  which  he  executed  in  a  satisfactory  manner." 

"My  duty  now  requires  that  among  all  who  behaved  well,  I 
"  name  those  who  were  most  distinguished  for  their  zeal  and 
"activity."  *  *  *  * 

"*^  *  *  and  First  Lieutenants  GORE,  SIDNEY  SMITH 
"  (mortally  wounded  on  the  14th,)  and  HALLER,  and  2d  Lieu- 
"  tenants  GRANT  and  JUDAH,  behaved  with  distinguished  gal- 
"  lantry  on  the  13th,  and  14th."  * 

"  Whilst  I  deem  it  proper  to  particularize  the  above  named 
"  Officers,  I  cannot  refrain  from  calling  the  attention  of  the  Major 
"  General  Commanding  to  the  fact  that  there  is  not,  nor  has  not 
"  been,  a  single  Captain  on  duty  with  it.  This  when  a  Regiment 
"  has  behaved  so  well,  and  when  its  young  officers  have  uniformly 
"  displayed  such  gallantry,  should  be  taken  into  consideration  in 
"the  distribution  of  those  rewards  which  are  the  great  incen- 
tives, etc." 


EL  MOIINO  DEL  BEY. 


From  Gen.    WOBTH'S  Report,    dated  "Headquarters,    1st  Division,    Tacubaya, 
September  10th,  1847,"  [See  Pages  363-5-6.] 

«*        *        *    when  the  assaulting  party  commanded    by 


32 

"Wright,  and  guided  by  that  accomplished  officer,  Captain 
"  Mason  of  the  Engineers,  assisted  by  Lieutenant  Foster,  dashed 
"  gallantly  forward  to  the  assault.  Unshaken  by  the  galling  of 
"  the  musketry  and  canister  that  was  showered  upon  them,  on 
"  they  rushed,  driving  Infantry  and  Artillery  men  at  the  point  of 
'-  the  bayonet.  The  enemy's  field  battery  was  taken,  and  his 
"  own  guns  were  trailed  upon  his  retreating  masses ;  before 
"  however,  they  could  be  discharged,  perceiving  that  he  had 
"been  dispossessed  of  his  strong  position  by  comparatively  a 
"  handful  of  men,  he  made  a  desperate  effort  to  regain  it.  Ae- 
"  cordingly  his  retiring  forces  rallied  and  formed  with  this  object. 
"  Aided  by  the  Infantry,  which  covered  the  housetops  (within 
"  reach  of  which  the  battery  had  been  moved  during  the  night,) 
"  the  enemy's  whole  line  opened  upon  the  assaulting  party  a 
"  terrific  fire  of  musketry,  which  struck  down  eleven  out  of  the 
" fourteen  officers  that  composed  the  command  and  non-c^ommis- 

"  sioned  officers  and  men  in  proportion ;  etc. 

**********          * 

«  *  -x-  *  Commending  the  gallant  dead,  the  wounded, 
"  and  the  few  unscathed,  to  the  respectful  memory  of  their 
"  countrymen,  and  the  rewards  due  to  valor  and  conduct,  I  pre- 
"  sent  the  names  of  those  especially  noticed  by  subordinate 
"  commanders,  uniting  in  all  they  have  said,  and  extending  the 

"  same  testimony  to  those  not  named. 

*  *  *          *  *  *       s  *  #          *  *          * 

"ASSAULTING  COLUMN. — Brevet  Major  WEIGHT,  8th  Inf., 
"  commanding,  wounded ;  Capt.  J.  L.  MASON,  Engineers, 
"  wounded  ;  Capt.  E.  MEEEILL,  5th  Inf.,  killed ;  Capt.  A.  CADY, 
"  6th  Inf.,  wounded ;  Capt.  W.  H.  T.  WALKEE,  6th  Inf.,  wound- 
"  ed ;  Capt.  J.  V.  BOMFOED,  8th  Inf. ;  1st  Lieut.  M.  L.  SHACKLE- 
"  FOED,  2d  Art,,  wounded ;  1st  Lieut.  C.  B.  DANIELS,  2d  Art. 
"  wounded ;  1st  Lieut.  G.  O.  HALLEE,  4th  Inf. ;  1st  Lieut.  J. 
"  D.  CLAEKE,  8th  Inf.,  wounded ;  2d  Lieut.  J.  F.  FAEEY,  3d  Art., 
"  killed  ;  2d  Lieut.  J.  G.  SNELLING,  8th  Inf.4,  wounded ;  2d  Lieut. 
"  M.  MALONEY,  4th  Inf. ;  2d  Lieut.  JOHN  G.  FOSTEB,  Eng., 
"  wounded." 


33 


AGAIN  : 


From  Brevet  Major  WRIGHT'S  Report  as  commander  of  the  storming  party  dated 
"Tacubaya,  Mexico,  Sept.,  10th,  1847."  [See  Appendix  Page  165.] 

The  2cl  company,  composed  of  the  4th  Infantry,  was  under 
"  Capt.  WALKEE,  6th  Infantry,  with  1st  Lieut.  HALLEK." 

"  The  conduct  of  all  the  officers  and  men  on  this  occasion  is 
"  worthy  the  highest  commendation.  Eleven  officers,  and  a 
"large  number  of  the  rank  and  file,  were  either  killed  or 
"  wounded." 

AGAIN  : 

From  Major  FRANCIS  LEE'S  Eeport  dated  "Headquarters  4th  Infantry  Tacubaya, 
Mexico,  September  9th,  1847,"  [Appendix,  Pages  143-4.] 

"  The  battalion,  except  a  detail  of  100  men  for  the  storming, 
"  under  Lieutenants  HALLEK  and  MALONEY,  was  formed,  ect." 

"  It  now  only  remains  for  me  to  designate  those  who  gallantly 
"  distinguished  themselves,  and  were  most  active  during  the 
"  day." 

"First  Lieuts.  GOBE  ancl  HALLEE,  especially  mentioned  to 
"  me  by  Major  BUCHANAN  ; 

Then  follows  all  the  names  of  the  officers  of  the  Kegiment,  who 
were  present  in  the  action,  and  immediately  after  he  says  :  "It 
"  will  be  proper  to  state  that  1st  Lieutenant  HALLEB  and  2d, 
"  Lieutenant  Maloney,  joined  the  battalion  immediately  after 
"  the  charge  of  the  storming  party,  and  remained  with  it  during 
"  the  day." 

CONTBEBAS,   SAN  ANTONIO,  AND  CHUBUBUSCO. 

From  Major  LEE'S  Keport  of  the  series  of  "glorious  victories"  on  the  20th,  August, 
dated  at  "Headquarters,  4th  Infantry,  Landrillera,  Mexico,  August  23d,  1847," 
[See  Appendix  Page  52.  ] 

"  I  cannot  too  much  commend  the  officers  of  my  battalion. 
"  Their  successful  exertions  are  the  more  commendable  as  they 
"  were  so  few  in  number,  and  I  beg  leave,  therefore,  to  mention 
"  their  names." 

Then  follows  all  the  names  of  the  officers  of  the  Eegiment 

3 


34 

present  that  day,  among  which  will  be  found :    "  1st  Lieut.  G. 
O.  HALLEB  commanding  .Company." 

AGAIN  : 

From  Brevet  Col.  GAULAND'S  Report  of  the  actions  of  the  20th  August  1847,  dated 
"Headquarters,  1st  Brigade,  1st  Divison,  Tacubaya,  August  23d,  1847,"  [See 
Appendix,  Page  47.  ] 

The  4th,  Infantry  at  this  moment  rejoined  me, 
"  and  Major  LEE  was  directed  to  advance  and  occupy  the 
"  extreme  right  of  our  line.  These  movements  were  executed 
"  undar  a  heavy  fire  of  cannon  and  musketry ;  our  troops,  how- 
"  ever,  continued  to  advance  slowly,  but  steadily,  through  fields 
"  of  rank  corn  and  over  deep  ditches.  The  battle  field,  from 
"  the  bridge  head  to  the  left  of  the  enemy's  line,  was  warmly 
"  contested  for  about  two  hours,  the  musketry  rolling  without 
"one  moment's  intermission,  etc." 


For  my  services  in  MEXICO,  I  received  two  commissions  by 
Brevet.  The  first  one  was  the  rank  of  Captain  by  Brevet,  from 
the  8th,  Sept.,  1847,  "For  gallant  and  meritorious  conduct  in  the 
battle  of  MOLINO  DEL  REY."  The  second  was  the  rank  of  Major 
by  Brevet,  from  the  13th  Sept.,  1847,  "for  gallant  and  merito- 
rious conduct  in  the  battle  of  CHAPULTEPEC,  Mexico."  I  have 
also  been  furnished  with  the  resolutions  of  the  Legislature  of 
Pennsylvania,  and  my  name  has  been  inscribed  in  the  journals 
of  both  the  Houses,  in  compliment  to  my  services. 

SERVICES  ON  THE  PACIFIC  SLOPE. 

In  1852,  my  Company  embarked  on  the  U.  S.  storeship  Fre- 
donia,  sailed  around  Cape  Horn,  and  after  a  seven  months  voy- 
age, reached  San  Francisco,  thence  sailed  in  a  steamer  to  Fort 
Vancouver,  Washington  Territory,  and  shortly  after,  July  1853, 
was  stationed  at  Fort  Dalles,  Oregon,  then  a  Territory,  a 
dreary,  isolated  spot,  but  since  has  become  a  thriving  city,  in 


35 

consequence  of  the  developments  of  the  Gold  regions  to  the 
East  of  it.  In  those  days  freight  from  Portland  to  the  Dalles 
(one  hundred  miles)  was  $75.00  per  ton  :  the  ordinary  necessi- 
ties of  a  family,  far  exceeded  an  officer's  pay  :  luxuries  were 
scarcely  to  be  had — eggs  12J  cents  each,  butter  $1.50  per  pound, 
contract  price  of  Beef  27  cents  per  pound.,  etc.  At  that  time  it 
was  indeed,  mentally  as  well  as  pecuniarily,  a  great  trial  to  be 
confined  to  a  post  so  destitute  of  all  that  makes  life  agreeable. 

MASSACRE  ON  BOISE  RIVER,   AND  MILITARY  EXPEDITION. 

In  1854,  the  family  of  a  Mr.  Ward,  and  other  immigrants, 
were  massacred  on  Boise  Kiver,  about  three  hundred  and  fifty- 
five  miles  from  the  Dalles,  by  the  Winneste  Indians,  a  tribe  of 
the  great  Shoshone  Nation,  under  circumstances  of  the  most 
atrocious  barbarity. 

The  two  companies  then  at  Fort  Dalles,  were  reduced 
by  discharges  and  desertions  to  fifty-six  soldiers  all  told. 
I  was  dispatched  with  twenty-six  of  them  to  the  massacre 
ground,  there  to  chastise  the  murderers  and  give  protection  to 
the  immigrants.  The  citizens  of,  and  the  immigrants  at  the 
Dalles,  thinking  my  small  force  inadequate,  formed  a  company 
of  thirty-nine  volunteers,  foUowed  after  me,  and  reported  for 
duty.  At  the  Grande  Konde,  (one  hundred  and  ninety  miles 
from  the  Dalles,)  a  few  warriors  of  the  Nez  Perces,  and  Uma- 
tilla'  Indians  offered  their  services  to  me,  and  were  accepted. 
With  this  mixed  force  we  invaded  the  usual  haunts  of  the  mur- 
derers, killed  a  few,  and  recaptured  the  clothing  and  other  ef- 
fects taken  from  their  victims.  With  an  old  Indian,  spme 
squaws  and  children,  captives,  we  brought  up  the  rear  of  the 
Immigration.  In  the  correspondence  between  Brig.  Gen.  JOHN 
E.  WOOL,  commanding  the  Department  of  the  Pacific,  and  the 
then  Secretary  of  War,  JEFFERSON  DAVIS,  which  was  published  by 
the  U.  S.  Senate,  I  found  the  latter  has  expressed  his  approval, 
in  strong  terms,  of  my  services  and  energy  in  this  expedition. 


36 


SECOND  SNAKE  INDIAN.  EXPEDITION. 

In  1855,  General  WOOL  organized  a  force  of  over  one  hundred 
and  fifty  men,  and  placed  me  in  command,  to  further  chastise 
these  murderers.  Returning  to  Fort  Boise  in  the  fishing  sea- 
son, we  drove  the  guilty  Indians  from  their  fishing  places  on 
Boise  and  Payette  rivers,  then  advanced  some  five  hundred 
miles  from  Fort  Dalles,  and  established  a  depot  on  the  Bigr  Ca- 
mash  Prairie,  from  whence  we  scouted  the  head- waters  of  Boise, 
Payette,  and  Salmon  rivers,  on  the  North  of  us,  and  to  the 
Rocky  Mountains  and  head- waters  of  the  Missouri,  on  the  East, 
and  at  Salmon  Falls  and  along  Snake  river  on  the  South.  In 
this  expedition  we  hung  several  of  the  murderers  over  the 
graves  of  their  victims ;  in  the  mountains  we  hung  and  killed 
others,  until  we  had  destroyed  as  many  warriors  as  they  had 
killed  of  the  whites,  besides  having  captured  women  and  chil- 
dren and  old  men.  The  remnant  of  the  tribe  fled  in  terror  to- 
wards Humboldt  river  in  California.  In  this  expedition  some 
of  our  horses  had  travelled  at  least  seventeen  hundred  miles. 

EFFECTS  OF  GOLD  DISCOVERIES. 

About  this  time,  the  discoveries  of  gold  by  the  employees  of 
the  Hudson  Bay  Company,  near  their  trading  post,  Fort  Col- 
ville,  in  Washington  Territory,  became  well  known,  and  caused 
many  miners  to  visit  that  region ;  many  passing  from  Puget 
Sound  through  the  Klikatat  and  Yakima  Country,  and,  in  the 
Jatter,  two  or  more  miners  were  murdered.  Having  ordered  my 
command  to  return  to  the  Dalles,  I  proceeded  in  advance  by 
rapid  marches,  and  found  a  threatening  state  of  affairs  to  exist 
quite  close  to  Fort  Dalles.  The  Indian  tribes  were  sullen  and 
hostile,  and  the  Whites  much  excited.  Major  BOLAN,  a  highly 
esteemed  citizen  of  Washington  Territory,  and  Sub-Indian 
Agent  in  charge  of  the  Yakimas,  went  to  this  tribe  to  counsel 
them  for  Peace  and  to  get  the  murderers.  He  was  assassina- 
ted. The  Indians  knew  very  well  that  if  the  death  of  their 
Agent  became  known  to  the  troops,  immediate  war  would  fol- 


37 

low.  They  therefore  sent  runners  to  inform  their  allies  of 
their  danger,  and  threw  out  scouts  to  observe  the  movements  of 
the  soldiers  at  Fort  Dalles,  and  took  every  precaution  to  keep 
those  Indians  not  disposed  for  war,  from  communicating  with 
the  white  people. 

THE  OREGON  WAR. 

i* 

The  long  absence  of  Major  BOLAN  from  the  Dalles,  caused 
me  to  send  an  Indian  Spy  in  the  Yakima  district  to  learn 
something  about  him.  It  was  with  difficulty  he  could  get 
back.  In  the  meantime  an  Old  Squaw  escaped  through 
their  lines  and  brought  the  news  of  BOLAN'S  assassination,  and 
the  collection  of  warriors  from  all  the  neighboring  tribes  to 
wipe  out  the  White  people.  The  information  was  confirmed  in 
varioiis  ways,  and  it  was  duly  communicated  to  the  Command- 
ing Officer  of  the  District,  stationed  at  Fort  Vancouver. 
By  this  time  the  Infantry  portion  of  my  Battalion  had 
arrived  from  the  Camash  prairie,  and  all  the  available  force  at 
Fort  Dalles — making  one  hundred  fighting  men,  divided  into 
two  companies,  and.  one  Sergeant  Major,  and  one  Commissary 
and  Quartermaster  Sergeant — total  102 — having  Captain  (now 
Brigadier  General)  BUSSELL  and  myself  commanding  companies ; 
Lieut.  GRACIE  in  charge  of  the  Mountain  Howitzer ;  and  Asst. 
Surgeon  GEORGE  W.  HAMMOND,  as  medical  officer — were  held  in 
readiness,  with  subsistence,  for  the  command,  prepared  for 
the  pack-mules,  to  march  at  a  moment's  notice.  But  this  news 
brought  me  no  orders  to  march. 

Fortunately  the  Acting  Governor  of  Washington  Territory 
heard  of  the  murders  of  the  two  Miners,  and  made  a  requisition 
for  one  Company  of  U.  S.  Troops  to  invade  the  Yakima  Conn- 
try  from  Fort  Dalles  and  demand  the  murderers  from  that  tribe. 
The  Commandant  of  the  District  ordered  me  to  send  a  Company, 
but  knowing  the  peril,  I  took  the  responsibility  of  taking  all  my 
available  force,  and  went  in  person.  A  consciousness  of  the 
danger  induced  me  to  proceed  with,  not  to  send  this  little  band  of 
soldiers,  and  I  believe  that  the  Adjutant  General,  of  the  U.  S. 
Army,  will  bear  me  witness  that  I  have  never  sought  to  avoid 


.       38 

necessary  danger,  but  have  always  encountered  the  enemy  and 
used  my  humble  abilities  to  the  best  advantage  for  my  country. 

i 

THE  THREE  DAYS  FIGHTING. 

The  first  night  out  my  spy  returned  having  escaped  from  the 
hostile  camp  and  declared  that  Kamiarkin^  the  Yakima  Chief, 
had  collected  more  warriors  than  he  was  able  to  designate  by 
numbers,  and  that  a  force  double  the  size  of  my  command  would 
never  be  able  to  get  back.  We  however  advanced  and  on 
the  fourth  day,  as  we  descended  a  hill  to  the  bottom  lands  of 
Topinish  Creek  to  encamp,  we  discovered  the  Indians  taking 
position  behind  trees  to  fight.  At  the  same  time,,  a  Chief  on  a 
distant  bluff  was  making  a  harangue  to  his  warriors,  who  replied 
to  him  with  yells,  and  thus  showed  their  positions  and  that  they 
were  not  greatly  superior  in  numbers.  As  soon  as  our  mule 
train  had  come  up  and  our  rear  was  properly  guarded,  we  at- 
tacked our  adversaries  and  drove  them  off.  During  the  action 
fresh  warriors  came  up  and  showed  themselves  on  the  bluffs 
around  us.  At  sundown  perhaps  six  hundred  warriors  were 
in  view  but  all  retired  during  the  twilight.  Early  the  next 
morning  the  warriors  surrounded  our  position  but  a  few  shots 
made  them  cautious,  until  they  found  our  balls  fell  wide  of 
their  marks — we  having  only  the  old  smooth  Bored  muskets 
with  spherical  balls.  In  several  instances  war  parties  becoming 
more  venturesome  would  crawl  up  very  close  to  the  knolls  be- 
hind which  our  men  awaited  their  approach,  and  would  with 
stones  construct  what  is  now  called  rifle  pits,  to  annoy  our 
skirmishers  when  they  exposed  themselves,  and  these  were 
driven  off  by  bayonet  charges. 

Our  position  enabled  us  to  see  over  the  plain,  and  hourly 
fresh  clouds  of  dust  announced  the  approach  of  reinforcements 
to  our  foes.  We  had  not  rations  enough  to  hold  out  until  re- 
inforcements from  Fort  Vancouver  could  join  us,  and  it  would 
have  been  as  foolish  as  disastrous  to  attempt  with  my  small 
force  of  foot  soldiers  to  chastise  or  subdue  the  well  mounted  and 
active  enemy  before  us.  Prudence  therefore  made  it  my  duty 


39 

to  return  if  practicable  to  Fort  Dalles,  where  a  properly  mounted 
party  would  be  organized  to  assist  our  efforts.  Hence  at  night 
we  retraced  our  steps  to  the  top  of  the  mguntain  near  us,  and 
allowed  the  men  rest,  and  next  morning  fell  back  towards  Fort 
Dalles,  skirmishing  with  the  Indians  until  nearly  sundown.  We 
lost  five  killed  and  seventeen  wounded,  and  brought  the  wounded 
in  safely,  also  the  corpse  of  the  gallant  Commissary  Sergeant 
MULHOLLAND,  who  fell  in  the  last  bayonet  charge. 

I  may  here  introduce,  I  hope  without  impropriety,  a  letter  from 
FATHER  PANDOSY,  of  the  Society  of  Oblates  of  the  Immaculate 
Mary,  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Mission  in  the  Yakima  Country,  in 
regard  to  the  number  of  Indians. 

To  Major  Holler : 

MAJOK  :  I  had  jnst  returned  from  the  Sound  when  you  reached  the  Tapinnish. 
I  found  the  Indians  irritated  in  an  excessive  degree,  I  endeavored  to  calm  their 
spirits,  and  for  this  purpose  I  sent  expresses]  to  all  the  Camps  to  endeavor  to 
induce  the  Chiefs  to  repair  to  my  mission,  representing  to  them  that  it  was  to 
their  greatest  interest  to  make  peace.  A  good  many  who  heard  my  message 
came,  but  the  great  majority  were  expecting  that  the  moment  had  come  to 
measure  their  strength  with  the  white  people,  particulariy  the  people  of  Kami- 
arken  and  the  Klikatats,  the  great  authors  of  the  war  ;  the  Klikatats  have  always 
made  the  Indians  of  this  vicinity  believe  the  Americans  were  cowardly  and  en- 
tirely inexperienced  in  the  art  of  war,  that  in  the  war  with  the  Shastas  the  Ameri- 
cans were  defeated,  and  were  obliged  to  employ  their  arms  (those  of  the  Klika- 
tats) to  make  good  their  retreat,  the  Klikatats,  I  say,  could  not  be  restrained, 
and  the  spies  sent  by  Kamiarken  to  examine  the  movements  of  the  soldiers  at 
the  Dalles  returned  at  the  same  time  to  the  camp  of  Kamiarken  and  reported 
you  were  coming  with  a  considerable  force  to  ensnare  in  a  net  (prendre  dans  un 
piege)  all  the  Chiefs.  That  you  wished  to  speak  them  fair,  and  thus  induce  them 
to  visit  your  camp,  when  you  would  seize  and  hang  Te-i-as  and  his  son,  Owvrai 
and  his  son,  Kamiarken,  Shawawai  and  his  son,  Sklon  and  all  the  people  who 
have  influence.  Some  moments  after,  two  or  three  Klikatats  came  into  the 
camp  of  Kamiarken  and  announced  your  arrival  at  the  "Assum,"  and 
(so  close  to  them)  that  you  had  gotten  in  between  the  front  and  the  rear  of  their 
party  while  advancing.  These  Klikatats  came  from  Kamas  Lake  and  Vancouver, 
and  in  their  report  they  enlarged  npon  the  report  of  the  spies,  saying  that  on 
their  route  they  had  been  attacked  several  times,  by  500  soldiers  who  had  come 
from  Vancouver  to  join  you,  and  with  the  intention  to  increase  the  irritation  of 
Kamiarken,  they  added  that  his  great  friend  Tamiatas  had  been  taken  and 
hung. 
On  this  news  Kamiarken  immediately  sent  expresses  to  all  the  Camps  to 


40 

assemble  the  men  and  direct  them  to  advance  to  meet  you  at  the  Tapinnish. 
That  you  had  been  attacked  by  the  Klikatats,  who  numbered  four  or  five  hun- 
dred men.  They  were  at  once  reinforced  with  the  people  of  Kamiarken,  Shawa- 
wai  angl  Sklon  ;  Owvria,  wlfo  was  farther  off  did  not  get  the  news  so  soon,  and  was 
later  in  directing  his  people  towards  the  Tapinnish.  If  your  position  would 
permit  you  would  have  seen  a  continual  procession  the  whole  of  Saturday  and 
Sunday. 

Knowing  the  small  number  of  soldiers  then  at  your  disposal,  the  fierce  rage 
in  the  hearts  of  some  of  the  tribes,  and  the  infinitely  superior  numbers  of  the 
savages,  I  did  not  think  it  possible  you  could  execute  so  happy  and  honorable  a 
retreat  as  that  which  signalized  your  return  to  the  Dalles. 

In  the  meantime  all  the  warriors  were  marching  to  give  you  battle.  I  wrote 
you  a  letter  by  an  Indian.  They  would  consent  to  a  peace  if  the  Americans 
wished  a  peace  and  would  grant  a  reserve  on  their  own  lands,  and  not  exile  them 
from  their  native  country.  But  in  case  that  their  conditions  were  not  accepted, 
they  were  resolved  to  fight  to  the  last  extremity,  determined,  even  if  they 
'succumbed  (these  are  their  literal  expressions)  they  would  sooner  destroy  their 
wives  and  their  children,  than  to  have  them  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  Americans, 
who  would  gratify  with  them  their  infamous  passions.  Still,  if  the  Americans 
and  the  soldiers  desired  a  peace,  they  were  willing  ;  if  they  preferred  a  war,  they 
were  also  for  war.  Their  numbers  at  this  moment  were  fifteen  hundred  men, 
and  if  they  wished  it,  they  could  soon  have  had  two  thousand  men. 

The  number  1500  would  appear  to  be  exaggerated  when  one  thinks  that  the 
Indians  of  the  Mission  had  refused  to  take  up  their  arms,  and  had  retired  to 
another  country,  but  their  numbers  were  fully  replaced  by  the  bands  come,  not 
only  from  the  environs,  as  the  Indians  on  the  banks  of  the  Columbia,  the  Wal- 
la-wallas, the  Pelousas,  Cayuses,  Priests'  Kapids,  the  Piskousas,  but  also  the 
Chelelpanls  and  the  Spokans. 

The  best  of  the  Chiefs,  who  wished  for  peace,  and  who  was  already  distin- 
guished for  saving  the  lives  of  Americans,  and  giving  them  provisions  for  their 
road,  was  entrusted  at  the  risk  of  his  life,  to  carry  you  a  common  letter,  but  he 
did  not  overtake  you  until  you  were  in  the  mountain  and  during  the  night.  He 
camped  near  yours,  because 'he  feared  the  flag  of  peace,  by  which  he  approached 
you,  might  not  perhaps  be  recognized,  and  in  the  morning  on  waking,  you  had 
continued  your  route  to  the  Dalles.  His  horse  was  much  fatigued,  and  he  could 
not  follow  further.  He  returned  to  the  Mission  and  assured  me  that  you  were 
beyond  danger  as  the  Indians  were  no  longer  pursuing  you.  This  news  rejoiced 
me  greatly,  and  I  could  only  attribute  your  safety  to  a  special  interposition  of 
Divine  Providence,  who  had  been  pleased  to  hear  our  prayers,  for  I  believe  it  to 
be  a  moral  impossibility  that  100  soldiers  could  be  able  to  resist  1500  Indians, 
determined  to  conquer  or  to  die. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be,  Major, 

Your  very  humble  and  obedient  servant, 
(Signed)  MIE  CLES  PANDOSY. 

The  above  is  a  true  translation  of  the  meaning  of  my  letter  to  Major  HALLEB. 

MIE  CLES  PANDOSY,  O.  M.  I. 


41 

The  Commandant  of  the  District  being  advised  by  courier  of 
the  defeat  of  my  expedition,  and  the  vast  proportions  that  the 
war  was  likely  to  assume,  called  on  the  Governors  of  Oregon 
and  Washington  Territories,  each,  for  two  Companies  of 
Volunteers. 

MAJOR  GABBIEL  J.   RAINS'    EXPEDITION. 

Gov.  CURRY,  of  Oregon  Territory,  believing  that  a  respectable 
force  sent  into  the  hostile  country  would  keep  the  enemy  oc- 
cupied at  their  own  homes  watching  after  the  safety  of  their 
women  and  children,  and  thus  save  the  White  Settlements  from 
rapine  and  murder,  called  out  a  Kegiment  and  commissioned 
the  present  Senator  from  Oregon,  General  NESMITH,  as  the 
Colonel.  But  .this  commission  being  superior  to  the  rank  of 
the  Major  Commanding  the  District,  the  latter  threw  obstacles 
in  the  way  of  so  large  a  force,  apprehending  the  loss  of  com- 
mand in  the  District.  Some  delay  occurred  and  the  winter  wea- 
ther overtook  the  troops  in  the  enemy's  country,  and  drove 
them  back  to  the  Dalles.  It  was  not  until  the  Acting  Governor 
of  Washington  Territory  had  called  out  two  Companies  of  Vol- 
unteers and  made  the  Commandant  of  the  District  Brigadier 
General  of  these  two  Companies  and  such  forces  as  should  op- 
erate in  his  Territory,  that  the  column  was  put  in  motion. 

Our  forces  consisted  of  about  three  hundred  Regulars  (among 
the  officers,  the  present  Major  Generals  SHERIDAN,  ORD,  and  AU- 
GUR, and  Brig.  Gen.  EUSSEL,)  and  about  five  hundred  Volunteer 
Cavalry,  well  mounted,  marched  through  a  dangerous  gorge  in 
the  mountains  into  the  Yakima  Valley,  and  found  a  few  Indians 
upon  the  opposite  side  of  the  river,  evidently  bent  on  annoying 
us.  The  Infantry  was  ordered  across  the  river,  but  the  water 
was  so  cold  and  swift  that  two  men  were  chilled  and  unable  to 
save  themselves  from  drowning.  Col.  NESMITH  then  crossed 
with  a  troop  of  Cavalry  and  routed  the  enemy  without  a 
casualty,  except  a  trifling  wound  to  his  horse.  Another  portion 


42 

of  the  Cavalry  had  gone  off  in  another  direction,  to  forage,  and 
was  fired  upon  by  the  Indians  and  had  a  few  men  wounded. 

Next  morning  we  could  see  distinctly  masses  of  the  Indians 
on  the  "Buttes"  at  the  mouth  of  Attanern  Creek,  only  a  few 
miles  off,  and  some  of  the  Braves  came  up  quite  close  to  our 
camp.  Our  General  estimated  the  enemy  at  three  hundred 
Warriors,  yet  these  Braves  disputed  the  passage  at  the  "Buttes" 
until  so -late  an  hour  that  our  command  went  into  camp  without 
dislodging  them.  Our  General  then  invited  the  best  marksmen 
to  go  out  to  the  "Butte"  in  front,  and  have  "a  free  fight"  with 
the  Indians  on  the  hill,  but  our  men  were  soon  driven  into  camp 
in  confusion.  My  company  instantly  sprang  to  their  arms  an*d 
covered  the  retreating  party.  I  learnt  from  them  that  the 
Indians  had  come  down  into  the  timber  on  the  river  bank,  and 
had  opened  a  fire  on  their  flank.  Immediately  my  company 
charged  the  wood  and  followed  the  Indians  up  hill  and  drove 
them  off  the  "Butte"  without  a  casualty.  As  I  advanced,  I  found 
Captain  AUGUR'S  company  supporting  my  movement.  The  In- 
dians gave  up  the  field  for  the  night,  but,  early  in  the  morning, 
attempted  to  resume  their  position  on  the  "Butte."  However 
they  were  quickly  dislodged,  and  one  of  them  was  killed  by  a 
friendly  Indian  who  had  gone  with  me  through  all  my  Indian 
Campaigns.  Soon  after,  snow  began  to  fall,  and  our  Campaign 
came  to  an  inglorious  end.  This  was  my  third  Campaign,  in 
the  six  months  preceding,  the  first  of  which  exceeded  fifteen 
hundred  miles  of  travel. 

KAMIAEKEN. 

The  origin  of  the  war  in  Oregon  is  not,  I  think,  generally  un- 
derstood. KAMIABKEN,  the  principal  Chief  of  the  several  bands, 
who  live  in  the  valley  of  the  Yakima,  should  take  rank  with  the 
most  eminent  Chiefs  of  the  Red-men,  known  to  fame,  and  is 
worthy  the  pen  of  a  Prescott.  A  keen,  far-sighted,  and  resolute 
Indian,  devoted  to  his  race,  and  most  bitterly  opposed  to  the 
encroachments  of  the  White-man  ;  he  had  kept  strict  watch 
over  his  dominions  and  never  permitted  a  white  man,  excepting 
Catholic  Priests,  to  obtain  a  foothold  within  his  realm.  He  had 


43 

travelled  from  Nation  to  Nation  to  Varn  them  of  their  danger  in 
letting  the  White-man  stop  to  till  their  soil.    At  length  the 
U.  S.  Commissioners  called  the  several  nations  East  of  the  Cas- 
cade Mountains  together  in  Council  to  make  a  treaty  and  to  fix 
upon  contracted  limits ;  the  Red-men  were  told  that  they  must 
give  up  many  of  the  spots  in  which  they  had  lived  during  their 
infancy  and  manhood.     It  was  more  than  they  could  bear. 
They  now  recognized  the  wisdom  of  KAMIAEKEN  and  turned  to 
him  for  advice.     He  reminded  them  that  in.  winter  the  snows 
covered  the  Cascade  Mountains  and  the  river  froze  over,  so  that 
the    White-man  on  the    West  side  of    the    Mountains    had 
no  means  of  coming  to  the  aid  of  those  in  their  country  :  there- 
fore he  advised  them  to  begin  to  lay  in  supplies  of  ammunition 
and  when  the  ice  was  formed,  then  "  wipe  "  out  every  White- 
man  who  treads  their  soil.     The  White-man's  treaty,  he  urged, 
was  a  hollow  form,  which,  if  it  bound  any  one,  only  bound  the 
Indian,  for  in  the  Willamette  Valley  the  Eed-men  had  made 
treaties  several  years  before,  but  to  that  day  they  had  not  re- 
ceived one  of  the  payments  promised  to  them,  and  the  White- 
men  were  now  too  numerous  there  to  be  driven  off  the  Indians' 
land.     The    White-men  gained  time  by  signing  the  Treaties 
there ;  he  would  sign  the  Treaty,  lull  the  suspicions  of  the 
Whites,  and  get  ready  the  materiel  for  war.     The  several  Na- 
tions covenanted  together  to  do  so.     The  Klikatats  around  Fort 
Vancouver,  were  in  the  League,  and  they  sent  messengers  to  the 
Indians  on  Kogue  river,  who  also  adopted  the  plan.    A  most 
terrible  calamity  was  to  fall  upon  the  Whites  in  mid-winter. 
But  the  enthusiasm  of  KAMIAKKEN'S  young  men  could  not  be  re- 
strained, and  they  revenged  with  death  the  insults  of  miners  to 
their  women.     This  brought  on  the  war  before  the  appointed  * 
time,  and  the  Settlements  were  on  their  guard  before  winter 
came.     The  Kogue-river  Indians,  however,  were  only  a  few  days 
behind  in  their  blows,  and  when  General  WOOL  arrived  at  Fort 
Vancouver,  from  San  Francisco,  he  found  the  Governor  of  Ore- 
gon grappling  in  earnest  with  his  barbarous  enemy,  leaving  lit- 
tle for  the  General  to  do.     Wounded  in  self-esteem,  the  General 
tried  to  convince  himself  it  was  no  great  war,  and  seems  to  have 


44 

displayed  an  unworthy  opposition  to  the 'measures  adopted. 
KAMIAEKEN  fought  and  defeated  my  command,  and  he  resisted 
Brig.  Gen.  RAINS'  eight  hundred  men.  But  when  he  saw  our 
numbers  rapidly  swelling  with  fresh  troops,  and  no  more  hope 
for  his  poor  Country,  while  Colonel  WEIGHT  was  offering  most 
tempting  terms  to  his  people,  to  get  them  to  bury  the  Hatchet, 
he  advised  them  to  do  so,  and  sent  word  to  the  Colonel  that  his 
"talk"  was  good  and  his  people  would  accept  it,  "But  as  for 
me — I  am  KAMIAEKEN  still !"  and  he  left  his  people,  to  dwell  in 
the  Buffalo  Country,  away  from  the  White-man. 

WHAT  MIGHT  HAVE  BEEN   DONE  BY  EECOGNIZING  THE  VOLUNTEEES. 

It  was  customary  for  me  in  the  fall  of  the  year  to  make  pur- 
chases in  Portland  for  the  winter,  and  when  going  down, 
Col.  NESMITH  requested  me  to  deliver  a  letter  to  General  WOOL 
asking  for  a  Howitzer  or  two,  and  a  few  Artillerists,  to  be  sent 
to  the  aid  of  the  other  portion  of  his  Regiment,  who  were 
threatening  the  Indians,  who  had  taken  forcible  possession  of 
the  Hudson  Bay  Company's  Fort  at  the  mouth  of  the  Walla- 
Walla  river.  I  had  an  agreeable  interview  with  General  WOOL 
at  Fort  Vancouver :  he  thought  the  Volunteers  too  numerous, 
that  they  drained  the  country  of  the  materiel  which  he  could 
use  with  better  advantage  in  the  hands  of  Regulars,  and  would 
create  unnecessary  expense.  I  suggested  that  the  expenses  had 
been  already  incurred,  for  which  he  could  not  be  held  responsi- 
ble, and  it  would  be  desirable  to  make  the  very  best  use  of  the 
means  which  he  found  at  hand,  in  order  that  the  Indians  might 
have  plenty  to  do  in  guarding  their  women  and  children  in  their 
own  country,  and  be  thus  prevented  from  attacking  white  settle- 
ments. 

I  stated  my  convictions  that  if  we  pressed  the  War  party  at 
Fort  Walla- Walla  with  a  large  force,  they  would  cross  the  Col- 
umbia river  and  seek  refuge  in  the  Yakima  Country,  hoping 
that  the  river  would  be  a  barrier  to  our  pursuit.  But  the  snow 
had  already  fallen  on  the  Cascade  Mountains  on  the  West  side, 
and  on  the  hills  to  the  North  side,  and  was  too  deep  for  animals 
to  travel  through  it,  so  there  remained  only  the  crossings  of  the 


45 

Columbia  river,  whereby  the  Indians  could  escape.  Now  if  the 
Volunteers  and  Regulars  co-operated,  there  would  be  sufficient 
troops  to  place  a  force  upon  every  trail  and  pass  leading  into  the 
Yakima  Country.  They  could  easily  be  crossed  over  the  river 
and  on  a  given  day  the  whole  force  could  advance,  and  the 
strength  of  this  movement  would  be,  that,  the  roads  converging, 
would  meet  just  where  the  gnemy  would  be  found,  and  the 
Warriors  would  be  enveloped  by  this  large  force  which  must 
capture  them,  the  women,  and  stock,  and,  bring  the  war  to  a 
close.  The  General  seemed  to  be  pleased,  and  inquired  of  me 
where  I  would  construct  a  Fort  if  sent  into  the  Walla- Walla 
Country,  and  subsequently  advised  me  to  drill  my  company  at 
skirmishing,  and  get  ready  for  a  movement.  The  only  objection 
which  suggested  itself  to  the  General  was  the  want  of  shoes, 
and  the  enfeebled  condition  of  the  horses  that  had  just  made 
three  campaigns.  But  shoes  and  horses  could  have  been  sup- 
plied in  time  for  this  movement,  if  it  had  been  desired. 

WHAT  THE  VOLUNTEEES  ACCOMPLISHED. 

The  Howitzers  were  refused.  The  volunteers  advanced  on 
and  captured  the  Fort,  and  after  three  or  four  days  of  fighting, 
defeated  the  Indians  with  considerable  loss,  and  drove  them  out 
of  that  country,  just  in  time  for  Governor  I.  J.  STEVENS,  of 
Washington  Territory,  (who  was  returning  with  a  small  party  of 
Whites  and  Nez  Perces  Indians,  from  the  Blackfoot  Country, 
whither  he  had  gone  to  make  a  treaty  with  that  Nation,)  to  get 
through  without  being  attacked  by  their  large  numbers.  Dur- 
ing the  fighting  Pu-o-PU-o-MOX-MOX,  an  old  Walla-Walla  Chief, 
feared  and  respected  by  friends  and  foes  for  his  shrewdness  and 
resolution,  being  a  prisoner,  attempted,  to  escape  and  was  slain, 
and  mutilations  of  his  body,  unworthy  a  civilized  people,  were 
perpetrated  by  a  few  individuals.  The  success  of  these  Volun- 
teers seemed  to  disturb  the  General.  From  this  time  he  unspar- 
ingly denounced  the  Volunteers  as  if  all  had  shared  in  the  bru- 
talities on  PU-O-PU-O-MOX-MOX.  He  denounced  the  Governors 
and  the  people  of  the  Territories,  and  styled  the  War  as  a  "God 
send"  to  the  people,  who  were  all  the  while  in  imminent  dan- 


46 

ger  of  the  Tomahawk  and  Scalping  knife.  He  even  stooped  so 
low  as  to  misrepresent  history  connected  with  this  war.  He 
cautioned  the  public  not  to  advance  the  Volunteers  any  supplies, 
and  intimated  that  Congress  would  not  reimburse  the  expenses 
of  the  Volunteers,  if  he  could  prevent  it.  The  people  fearing 
that  the  General's  influence  would  retard  the  payment,  if  not 
prevent  Congress  from  voting  the  appropriation,  refused  to  fur- 
nish any  more  supplies.  Yet  supplies  were  indispensable,  and 
the  Quarter  Master  and  Subsistence  Departments  were  obliged 
to  allow  prices  far  above  the  market  rates,  to  warrant  the  risks 
of  the  merchants  as  to  getting  their  pay.  The  claims  in  Oregon 
and  Washington  Territories,  growing  out  of  this  "War,  amounted 
to  nearly  $6,000,000.  The  General  while  trying  to  guard  the 
purse-strings  of  the  U.  S.  'Treasury,  did  no  other  service  than 
actually  to  swell  the  cost  of  things  by  a  considerable  per  cent- 
age. 

In  "The  National  Intelligencer,"  of  May  3d  1856, 1  found  a 
letter,  signed  by  JOHN  E.  WOOL,  so  full  of  falsehoods  in  regard 
to  my  three  days  fight,  that  I  took  the  liberty  of  correcting  them, 
and  had  a  copy  of  my  letter  published  in  "  The  Weekly  Ore- 
gonian"  at  Portland,  in  Oregon.  I  submit  a  copy  to  give  an 
idea  of  his  perversion  of  the  history  of  that  war. 

CAMP  IN  THE  VALLEY  KIT-E-TAS,  W.  T.,  j 
July  30th,  1856.      j" 

To  the  Editors  of  The  National  Intelligencer  : 

GENTLEMEN  :  I  have  just  read  in  your  paper  of  May  3d,  [tri-weekly,  ]  a  letter 
signed  JOHN  E.  WOOL,  dated  April  2nd,  1856,  addressed  to  you,  and  mainly  oc- 
cupied with  denunciations  of  the  Governors  of  Oregon  and  Washington  Terri- 
*toriea. 

In  that  letter,  however,  occurs  the  passage  hereto  annexed,  marked  A,  per- 
sonal to  myself,  and  injurious  to  my  military  character.  The  General  therein 
asserts  that  I  proceeded  against  the  Yakimas,  ' « but  without  the  precautions  necessary 
against  savage  warfare."  The  specification  in  support  of  this  charge  is,  that 
"  about  sixty  miles  from  the  Dalles,  on  emerging  from  a  deep  ravine,  he  found  himself, 
as  he  reports,  confronted  by  1,500  Indians,"  or  as  he  elsewhere  expresses  it,  that  I 
allowed  my  command  "  to  have  been  drawn  into  a  sort  of  ambush."  [See  letter  of 
Nov.  §d,  with  Sec'y  of  War's  report,  Ex.  Doc.] 

The  facts  in  the  case  are  these  :  I  was  ordered  to  detail  one  Company  for  this 
service,  and  I  deemed  it  necessary  to  send  out  two  Companies.  I  further  deemed  it 
necessary  to  suspend  the  District  Order  which  would  have  withdrawn  LIEUT.  E. 


47 

H.  DAY,  and  44  men  of  L  Comp'y,  3d  Artillery,  to  Fort  Vancouver,  and  I  directed 
that  this  Company  and  a  Howitzer  will  be  held  ''in  readiness  to  march  at  any 
moment  after  the  departure  of  the  Infantry,  and  will  be  considered  as  the 
Eeserve  to  the  invading  Battalion  in  case  of  necessity. "  These  were  the  pre- 
liminary precautions  ;  and  en  route  there  were  thrown  out  habitually  the 
Advance  and  Eear  Guards,  and  when  in  the  timber  the  Flank  Guards.  What 
necessary  precaution  then  has  been  omitted  ? 

Now,  on  the  6th  October  last,  when  descending  a  very  long  hill  in  an  open 
country, — yet  Genl.  Wool  says,  "on  emerging  from  a  deep  ravine  " — and  approach- 
ing a  stream  whose  banks  were  covered  with  oak  trees  and  thick  undergrowth, 
the  advanced  guard  perceived  the  Indians  in  their  front.  At  the  moment  a  Chief 
showed  himself  and  harangued  his  Warriors  who  replied  with  the  War-whoop. 
These  sounds  of  course  exposed  the  position  generally  and  the  limited  number 
of  the  Indians — they  did  not  perhaps  exceed  200  Warriors — yet  the  General  says, 
I  reported  that  I  was  confronted  by  1,500  Indians.  It  happens  moreover  that  I 
never  did,  in  my  reports,  state  the  number,  when  at  its  maximum,  to  be  1,500 
Indians.  But  I  did  notice  the  War-whoop  in  my  report,  and  expressly  stated 
that  my  Advanced  Guard  was  drawn  in,  the  troops  deployed  for  action,  and  after 
the  Hear  Guard  had  closed  up,  the  action  was  commenced— yet  with  these  facts 
before  him,  Genl.  Wool  says  I  allowed  my  command  to  fall  into  a  sort  of  ambuscade. 
The  loss  here  was  one  killed  and  several  wounded,  and  the  General  says  :  "after 
losing  t.wo  men  killed  and  some  thirteen  or  fourteen  wounded,  one  mortally,  he  [/] 
escaped  from  his  [my]  perilous  condition,  &c." 

The  field  was  open  to  view  like  a  chess  board  ;  we  could  see  War  parties  in 
the  distance  approaching,  which  swelled  the  numbers  of  the  enemy  consider- 
ably ;  several  moves  of  our  adversary  were  checked,  until  finding  my  position 
guarded  at  all  points,  the  real  attack  was  developed.  Capt.  Eussell's  Company 
being  on  the  left  descended  the  hill,  turned  the  right  flank  of  the  Indians  in  the 
brush,  opened  a  fire  upon  them  en  reverse,  and  followed  it  up  with  a  vigorous 
charge.  The  Indians  fled  and  left  the  field  in  our  possession.  Darkness  closed 
around  us  before  the  wounded  were  collected.  We  then  advanced  a  mile  and 
discovered,  on  ascending  a  height,  that  the  Indians  were  j^pt  far  off,  as  their 
voices  were  heard,  apparently  giving  orders  for  an  attack.  -We  examined  our 
ground,  as  well  as  the  darkness  would  permit,  and  resolved  to  hold  it ;  we  lay 
all  night  in  readiness  for  their  attack.  Daylight,  on  Sunday,  the  7th  October, 
showed  our  position  to  be  capable  of  defence,  although  destitute  of  wood,  grass, 
and  water,  and  decided  me  to  await  there  coming  events.  We  were  surrounded 
very  early  in  the  morning  by  600  or  700  Indians,  and  they  continued  to  pour  in, 
until  evening,  when  I  considered  the  number  doubled.  On  this  morning  I  wrote 
my  first  report,  calling  out  my  Eeserve  of  44  men,  and  not  "  1,000  men  to  relieve 
me,"  as  Genl.  Wool  has  stated.  The  report  was  written  to  be  ready  in  case  of  dis- 
aster [another  precaution  of  mine]  to  apprise  the  command  at  Fort  Dalles  of  our 
clanger.  Eepeated  charges  with  the  Bayonet  this  day  caused  the  Indian  skir- 
mishers to  keep  off  so  far  as  to  render  their  tiring  comparatively  harmless.  Our 
loss  was  now  13  wounded  and  two  dead.  This  evening  I  considered  my  com- 
mand in  imminent  danger,  and  I  resolved  to  extricate  it  by  a  night  march.  The 


48 

troops  retired  in  good  order,  the  separation  of  the  Hear  Guard  was  immediately 
discovered  and  the  Guide  sent  off  to  conduct  it  on  our  route,  while  we  advanced 
to  the  summit  of  the  mountain  to  halt  there  and  rest  the  weary  soldiers.  It  was 
only  after  this  that  I  ascertained  the  character  of  my  guide.  Early  on  the  8th, 
we  resumed  our  march  towards  the  Dalles,  and  soon  after  a  running  fight  ensued. 
I  now  dispatched  my  report,  written  on  the  previous  morning,  expecting  the 
Express  to  explain  the  changes.  The  timber  concealed  the  number  of  Indians 
opposing  us,  but  my  second  report  did  not  justify  the  General's  statement  that 
' '  with  this  small  force  [40  effective  men,  ]  he  succeeded  in  making  good  his  retreat, 
followed  two  days  and  nights  by  1,500  Indians"  because  I  expressly  stated  that 
before  sundown  on  this  day,  we  again  charged  the  Indians,  drove  them  out  of  the 
timber,  and  after  that  they  did  not  molest  us.  Our  total  loss  was  5  killed  and  17 
wounded — much  greater  than  would  appear  from  the  General's  statement,  who 
draws  the  conclusion  from  his  statement  that,  "under  the  circumstances  I  did  not 
consider  such  an  enemy  greatly  to  be  dreaded. " 

Here  are  the  main  facts  as  briefly  stated  as  a  clear  understanding  of  the  cir- 
cumstances, by  the  Header,  will  permit,  and  they  are  substantially  the  same  as 
those  I  submitted  in  my  reports.  I  have  contrasted  the  facts  with  the  distortions 
and  exaggerations  of  General  Wool,  who  "with  an  effrontery  which  even  his 
white  head  ought  not  to  prote'ct  from  rebuke  "  adds,  "  I  think  the  number  greatly 
exaggerated."  My  estimate  of  the  number,  1,200  or  at  most  1,400  Indians,  does 
not  materially  differ  from  the  statement  of  FATHEK  PANDOST,  of  the  (Catholic 
Mission  [whose  letter  is  hereto  annexed,  marked  B,]  at  the  period  of  my  retiring 
from  the  Sim-coo-a  Valley,  but  the  Father  shows  that  even  the  General's  1,500 
Indians  falls  far  below  the  force  ultimately  collected  to  fight  against  me. 

The  General  has  in  his  letter  voluntarily  charged  me,  first,  with  exposing 
unguardedly  "  104  Rank  and  File  "  to  an  ambuscade  of  1,500  Indians — a  criminal 
neglect  in  a  commanding  officer-  and  afterwards  expresses  his  convictions  that 
I  have  exaggerated  the  number  of  Indians,  therefore,  in  the  second  place,  made 
a  false  report.  Even  if  the  General's  charges  were  true,  the  columns  of  a  n'ews- 
paper  are  not  the  proper  place  to  arraign  the  offending  officer.  The  charges  are 
very  serious,  then  why  has  he  not  arraigned  me  for  trial  before  a  General  Court 
Martial?  Here  the  General,  I  fear,  has  overshot  his  mark.  He  has  convicted 
himself  either  of  gross  neglect  of  duty  in  not  causing  an  investigation  and  the 
punishment  of  the  offender,  or  he  has  gratuitously,  not  to  use  a  harsher  expres- 
sion, made  charges  to  the  injury  of  i;he  military  character  of  an  officer  placed 
under  his  command. 

And,  I  regret  to  add,  that,  in  looking  around,  I  can  find  nothing  to  fix  upon 
to  exculpate  or  extenuate  the  General's  conduct  towards  me.  I  had  made  an 
application  to  him  for  a 'Court  of  Inquiry,  long  before  his  letter  was  written,  which 
would  have  investigated  the  truth  of  my  reports  in  relation  to  this  expedition. 
He  actually  promised  to  grant  the  Court,  but  it  has  never  convened.  And  when  I 
learnt  casually  that  the  General  had  sent  a  report  of  this  expedition  to  Washing- 
ton, at  variance  with  my  reports,  and  calculated  I  feared  to  prejudice  the  War 
Department  in  regard  to  my  military  capacity,  I  respectfully  requested,  in  due 
form,  a  copy  of  his  report,  and  he  refused  to  grant  it.  It  was  by  the  merest  acci- 


49 

dent  that  I  became  aware,  in  this  isolated  region,  of  his  unofficial  attack  upon 
me,  before  the  public,  in  your  paper.  As  General  Wool's  statements  and 
charges  have  been  published  by  you,  I  respectfully  request  that  you  will  also 
insert  this  letter  in  the  columns  of  The  JnMli<jew,er,  and  oblige 

Yours  truly, 

G..  O.  HALLEE, 
Capt.  4th  Inf  y.,  and  Brevet  Major,  U.  S.  A. 

COL.   GEORGE    WRIGHT'S  CAMPAIGN. 

Col.  WRIGHT  with  his  Regiment,  the  9th  Infantry,  but  armed 
with  the  Minnie  Rifle,  a  short  time  after  Brigadier  General 
RAINS'  expedition,  arrived  at  Fort  Vancouver,  and  assumed 
command  of  the  District.  Gov.  CURRY,  of  Oregon  Territory, 
seeing  an  adequate  force  of  U.  S.  Troops  now  ready  to  take  the 
field,  withdrew  his  volunteers. 

The  arduous  services  performed  by  my  Company  in  the  three 
expeditions  of  1855,  induced  Col.  WRIGHT  to  let  it  rest  and  gar- 
rison Fort  Dalles,  while  he,  in  the  Spring  of  1856,  marched  with 
his  available  force  against  the  hostile  Indians.  He  had  provided 
that  one  Company  of  his  Regiment  should  garrison  Fort  Van- 
couver and  another  guard  the  Portage  at  the  Cascades  of  the 
Columbia  river,  and  as  two  other  Companies  were  operating 
on  Puget  Sound,  it  left  him  only  six  Companies  and  a  troop  of 
Cavalry  with  which  to  erect  several  posts  in  the  enemy's  Country 
and  also  scout  and  chastise  the  Indians — he  consequently  had  no 
soldiers  to.  spare  from  his  expedition.  The  transportation  on 
the  Columbia  river  being  very  limited,  for  the  increase  of  busi- 
ness brought  on  by  the  war,  it  took  time  to  get  the  Companies 
to  Fort  Dalles,  and  just  as  the  Company  designated  to  protect 
the  Portage  at  the  Cascades,  was  about  to  move,  General  WOOL 
made  a  flying  visit  in  the  Mail  Steamer  to  Fort  Vancouver,  and 
finding  the  two  Companies  there  took  them  off  at  once  to  Puget 
Sound,  beyond  Col.  WRIGHT'S  control,  without  ascertaining  what 
effect  it  might  have  on  the  Colonel's  plans.  To  replace  these 
losses  in  the  Colonel's  rear  was  to  weaken  and  destroy  his  ef- 
ficiency in  the  field.  He  therefore  trusted  the  Portage  to  a 
Sergeant  and  a  few  men  of  the  4th  Infantry  and  commenced  his 
march.  The  hostile  Indians,  knowing  the  movement  had  com- 

4 


50 

menced,  sprang  upon  the  settlement  at  the  Cascades,  and  com- 
pelled the  hitherto  friendly  Indians  to  join  with  them  in  killing 
men,  women  and  children,  and  burning  houses.  One  of  the 
Steamers  barely  escaped  capture.  The  soldiers  defended  their 
block-house  and  some  families  near  by,  and  at  the  upper  extrem- 
ity of  the  Portage,  all  the  citizens,  who  could,  rallied  in  a  large 
storehouse,  and  there  made  a  gallant  defence.  As  soon  as  the 
news  reached  the  Dalles  that  night,  Col.  WRIGHT  was  notified, 
and  next  morning  his  command  returned  and  took  passage  for 
the  Cascades,  where  he  encountered  the  enemy  and  soon  routed 
them.  • 

The  several  tribes  around  the  Dalles  still  friendly,  brought  in 
their  arms  and  proved  the  sincerity  of  their  friendship  by  depos- 
iting them  in  my  charge,  and  thus  relieved  from  apprehension 
the  minds  of  the  White  inhabitants.  The  Indians  elsewhere, 
hitherto  friendly,  were  surprised  at  this  success  against  the 
Whites,  and  joined  the  War  Party.  Besides  the  serious  loss  of 
life  and  property  at  the  Cascades,  and  detention  and  change  of 
plan  of  Colonel  WEIGHT'S  expedition,  the  Enemy  became  more 
confident  and  daring.  Near  the  Nachess  river,  they  were  drawn 
up  in  position  to  oppose  Colonel  WEIGHT'S  progress  into  their 
Country.  Their  force  had  to  be  respected,  and  the  Colonel 
thought  it  prudent  to  draw  every  available  soldier  from  Fort 
Dalles  to  join  him,  so  my  Company  again  took  the  field.  A 
Battalion  of  three  Companies  was  placed  in  my  charge,  and 
with  this  force  I  accompanied  him  on  his  long  march  through 
the  hostile  Territory,  north  of  the  Dalles.  Finally,  I  was  left  in 
the  Kit-e-tas  Yalley  to  keep  out  the  hostile  Indians,  until  orders 
were  received  from  General  WOOL,  in  the  fall  of  the  year,  for 
my  Company  to  proceed  to  Puget  Sound. 

Col.  WEIGHT,  taught  to  believe  that  the  Indians  had  been 
provoked,  by  the  conduct  of  the  Whites,  into  hostilities,  offered 
the  enemy  peace  if  they  would  return  to  their  homes  and  engage 
not  to  molest  the  White  people,  and  he  effected  an  understand- 
ing with  several^  of  the  hostile  tribes,  as  he  retraced  his  steps 
towards  the  Dalles.  But  his  experience  afterwards  must  have 
convinced  him  that  the  Indians  hated  the  presence  of  the 


51 

White-man,  and  designed  to  drive  him  from  their  country,  for 
no  sooner  had  the  large  nation  of  Spokane  Indians  the  opppor- 
tunity  of  fighting  our  troops  with  a  prospect  of  success,  than 
they  commenced  a  war.  Brevet  Lieut.  Col.  STEPTOE,  with  over 
one  hundred  and  fifty  mounted  men  of  the  Regular  Service,  was 
attacked  by  them,  and  after  a  severe  fight  was  defeated,  and 
this  fine  body  of  men  was 'completely  routed  from  their  country, 
leaving  some  wounded  to  take  care  of  themselves.  As  General 
WOOL  "  did  not  consider  such  an  enemy  greatly  to  be  dreaded" 
it  seemed  as  if  Providence  had  come  to  my  assistance  and  illus- 
trated by  comparison  the  General's  mistake  and  the  merits  of 
my  retreat. 

I  have  dwelt  longer  upon  the  WAK  IN  OKEGON,  than  the  humble 
design  of  this  pamphlet  first  contemplated.  I  intended  to  con- 
fine myself  to  my  own  services  merely,  but  in  this  war  my 
services  were  conspicuous,  honorable,  and  attended  with  consid- 
erable danger,  yet  very  few  persons  really  know  much  of  the 
history,  except  through  Gen.  WOOL'S  statements,  and  the  role 
played  by  him  being  secondary  to  the  Governor  of  Oregon,  who 
was  ex-officio  Commander  in  Chief  of  the  forces  called  out  for 
the  war  within  his  "  Territory,  and  therefore  galling  to  the 
ambition  of  a  General,  who  was  considered  an  aspirant  to  the 
high  office  of  Constitutional  Commander  in  Chief  of  the  Armies 
and  Navy  of  the  United  States.  I  may  be  wrong,  but  I  have  as- 
cribed to  this  ambition  the  motive  for  his  placing  obstacles  in 
the  way  of  the  Governor  while  endeavoring  to  subdue  the  fero- 
cious enemies  of  civilization  and  progress,  a'nd  it  may  account 
for  the  facts  of  history  being  distorted  and  obscured,  and  the 
services  of  his  officers  being  maligned.  Having,  in  my  case,  de- 
manded a  Court  of  Inquiry  to  investigate  my  conduct  in  this 
defeat,  he  made  several  attempts  to  convene  one  but  it  has 
never  met,  and  two,  of  the  three  members,  who  were  ordered  to 
sit  on  the  Court,  are  now  dead.  The  reason  for  their  not  hold- 
ing this  Court  has  never  been  explained,  but  since  that  time 
General  WOOL  has  published  his  letter  of  April  2d,  1856,  and  he 
has  distorted  the  facts  in  my  case  to  suit  himself, 


52 


FOET  TOWNSHEND. 

While  I  was  in  camp  in  the  Kit-e-tas  Valley,  I  was  ordered 
bj  General  WOOL,  with  my  Company,  to  Puget  Sound.  I  re- 
ceived orders,  also,  before  leaving,  from  the  Commandant  of 
the  Puget  Sound  District,  Lieut.  Col.  S.  CASEY,  9th  Inf.,  to  pro- 
cure at  Fort  Vancouver  the  necessary  building  materials  and  im- 
plements, for  constructing  a  Military  Post,  and  to  land  my 
Company  near  the  village  on  Port  Townsend,  in  Washington 
Territory,  and  if  I  approved  of  the  site  already  chosen  for  the 
Fort,  to  proceed  to  clearing  the  land  of  its  timber,  and  construct 
quarters.  After  a  reasonable  time  my  Officers  and  Soldiers 
were  provided  with  comfortable  barracks,  but  the  labor  was 
severe  and  immense,  to  clear  the  timber  away  in  a  dense  forest 
—trees  from  three  to  six  feet  in  diameter,  and  nearly  two  hun- 
dred feet  high — grade  the  ground,  etc.  Yet  I  had  to  superin- 
tend the  work,  be  my  own  Pioneer  in  the  woods,  my  own  Archi- 
tect to  design  the  plajis  of  the  buildings,  my  own  Quarter 
Master  and  Commissary  of  Subsistence,  and  do  the  duty  of 
Lieutenants,  for  those  promoted  to  my  Company  had  not  then 
joined.  Mr;  GEOEGE  GIBBS  of  Washington  Ty.,  came  to  my 
assistance  and  relived  me  very  much.  The  change  from  the 
excitement  of  the  field  service  to  constant  hard  labor  was  a 
trying  one  to  soldiers.  The  discovery  of  rich  gold  fields,  on 
Vraser  river,  offered  strong  temptations  to  the  soldiers  to 
desert  to  British  Columbia.  There  never  was  a  time  when 
more  vigilance  was  required  of  one  Company  officer,  and  I  am 
sure  that  no  officer  ever  gave  more  faithful  services  to  his 
Country  than  I  did  at  Fort  Townshend. 

SAN    JUAN   ISLAND. 

The  Department  of  Oregon  was  formed  in  1859  and  assigned 
to  Brig.  Gen.  HABNEY.  He  soon  altered  the  face  of  things, 
directing  Posts,  th^t  had  just  been  constructed,  to  be  abandoned, 
and  new  ones  to  be  established  elsewhere.  Ignoring  the  in- 
structions of  the  Secretary  of  State,  ME.  MAECY,  to  the  Governor 


53 

of  Washington  Territory,  to  abstain  from  further  exercise  of 
authority  on  San  Juan  Island  until  the  water  boundary  between 
the  United  States  and  the  British  Possessions  should  be  deter- 
mined by  competent  authority — and  COMMISSIONERS  were  then 
engaged  in  adjusting  this  very  line — he  sent  the  Company  from 
Fort  Bellingham  (just  abandoned,)  to  take  possession  of  San 
Juan  Island  and  suspend  British  authority  there,  and  substitute 
that  of  the  United  States.  Captain  PICKETT,  Commanding, 
issued  a  proclamation  to  this  effect  in  orders.  The  Authorities 
of  British  Columbia  were  highly  incensed  at  it,  and  took  meas- 
ures to  collect  all  their  available  force  near  the  Island,  and 
might  have  plunged  the  two  countries  immediately  in  war,  but 
for  an  insignificant  incident,  and,  as  they  had  five  formidable 
War  Vessels  in  the  waters  of  British  Columbia,  they  might  have 
suspended,  if  not  destroyed  our  immense  commercial  interests 
on  the  Pacific  Coast,  before  the  Authorities  in  Washington 
could  be  apprised  of  the  trouble — for  there  was  then  no  tele- 
graph across  the  Continent  as  now. 

The  incident  alluded  to,  was  the  arrival  of  our  mail  bringing 
European  news,  but,  particularly,  the  battle  of  Solferino.  The 
British  officers  first  heard  of  this  battle  from  us,  as  their  mails 
had  failed  to  arrive.  It  occurred  to  them  that  MK.  DALLAS,  our 
Minister  in  England,  might  there  have  adjusted  the  boundary 
question,  and  that  General  HAENEY  might  have  received  instruc-  , 
tions  from  Washington  to  occupy  the  Island.  This  idea  pre- 
vented them  from  taking  forcible  possession  of  the  Island,  and 
before  they  had  obtained  positive  information  to  the  contrary, 
GENERAL  SCOTT  had  arrived,  and  solved  the  controversy,  by 
allowing  an  equal  number  of  British  Marines  to  occupy  the 
Island,  and  British  subjects  to  obtain  protection  by  application 
to  their  own  Magistrates,  until  the  proper  Authorities  had 
mutually  agreed  to  a  boundary  line  and  the  ownership  of  the 
Island. 

The  news  of  British  preparations  for  hostilities  soon  reached 
Fort  Steilacoom,  and  the  Steamer  "  Massachusetts"  being  then 
in  port,  awaiting  orders,  the  Lieutenant  Colonel  Command- 
ing the  District,  immediately  dispatched  me  with  my  Com- 


54 

pany,    (and    a    small  detachment  of    Infantry,   for   the   pro- 
tection of  MR.  CAMPBELL,   the  United  States  Boundary  Com- 
missioner at  Semiahrnoo,  against  depredations  of  Northern  In- 
dians,) with  instructions  to  advise  with  Captain  PICKETT  and, 
if  he  required  aid,  to  land  my  forces  and  assume  command  :  to 
observe  the  proceedings  of  the  British  Navy,  and  to  keep  Head- 
quarters of  the  District  advised  of  important  occurrences  :  but 
the  ostensible  reason,  for  appearing  in  the  Archipelago,  was  or- 
ders to  search  the  Islands  for  Northern  Indians,  and  remove 
them  beyond  our  frontier.     I  reached  the  harbor  on  the  1st  of 
August,  and  found  Her  Majesty's  Steam-Corvette  "  TRIBUNE"  at 
anchor,  and  soon  after  the  "SATELLITE"  and  "PLUMPER"  ar- 
rived with  a  strong  force  of  British  Marines  and  Sappers  and 
Miners,  on  board,  from  Fraser  river.     I  communicated  my  in- 
structions to  Captain  PICKETT,  and  awaited  coming  events.     The 
British  Officers  questioned  me  closely,  about  the  news  by  the 
mail  and  of  Solferino,  and  they  gradually  quieted  down,  so  that 
I  felt  at  liberty  to  scout  for  Northern   Indians.     As  soon  as 
General  HARNEY  heard  of  the  British  preparations,  he  sent  all 
his  available  force  on  the  Columbia  river  over,  and  directed 
Lieut.  Col.  CASEY  to  take  them,  and  his  command  atFort  Steila- 
coom,  to  the  support  of  Captain  PICKETT.     I  was  soon  after  or- 
dered ashore  to  assist  in  fortifying  the  Island,  but  the  arrival  of 
GENERAL  SCOTT  broke  up  the  Camp,  without  completing  the  de- 
fences. 

+    IMPORTANCE  OF  A  STEAMER,   FOR  U.   S.   TROOPS,  ON  THE   SOUND. 

While  examining  the  shores  of  the  Islands,  in  the  Archipel- 
ago, I  received  a  call  from  the  Citizens  of  Whatcom,  by  an  Ex- 
press-boat, stating  that  a  party  of  Nooksahk  Indians,  painted 
and  armed,  taking  advantage  of  the  withdrawal  of  the  Troops 
from  Fort  Bellingham  (one  mile  off),  had  entered  the  town  and 
threatened  the  lives  of  Citizens,  and  were  resolved  upon  releas- 
ing an  Indian  Chief  held  in  prison,  and  actually  shot  one  man, 
when  the  Citizens  resisted  it,  by  returning  their  fire  and  killing 
four  or  more  Indians.  I  hastened  to  that  town,  landed  my  men, 
and  by  a  march  of  twenty-five  miles  struck  the  river  between 


55 

the  point  where  the  tribe  had  assembled  to  receive  their  dead 
friends,  and  their  homes  above,  so  that  they  could  not  pass  up 
the  river  without  my  consent.  They  were  astonished  to  find 
troops  between  them  and  their  lodges.  They  had  not  had  time 
to  think  how  they  should  revenge  this  loss.  They  received  my 
demand  with  submission,  gave  up  the  King-leaders  for  punish- 
ment, and  the  difficulty  thr  re  subsided. 

A  few  days  time  for  those  Indians  to  have  brooded  over  their 
loss,  would  most  probably  have  involved  the  settlement,  at  Bel- 
lingham  Bay,  in  murder  and  rapine,  but  the  unexpected  pres 
ence  of  troops  in  the  heart  of  their  country  was  so  wonderful  to 
them,  as  to  drive  all  thoughts  of  revenge  out  of  their  "  hearts." 
The  Steamer  undoubtedly  saved  a  war. 

FORT  MOJAVE, 

In  August,  1859,  my  Company  was  sent  to  San  Francisco,  and 
on  arriving  there,  was  ordered  to  Fort  Mojave,  on  the  Colorado 
river,  (of  the  West,)  in  New  Mexico,  over  three  hundred  miles 
from  San  Pedro,  in  California,  from  whence  all  our  supplies  were 
hauled  overland  in  wagons.  This  Post  has  been  regarded  as  the 
very  worst  in  the  United  States.  In  the  midst  of  an  arid  desert, 
extending  a  hundred  miles  to  the  East  and  West,  located  on  a 
barren  Mesa,  overlooking  the  bottom-lands,  there  was  nothing 
in  common  with  the  familiar  scenes  we  met  with  everywhere 
else,  but  the  Cotton  wood  trees  on  the  river  bank,  and  a  garden 
requiring  constant  irrigation.  The  heat  of  Summer  is  most  in- 
tense, and  wind  storms  charged  with  heated  sand  and  dust 
sweep  over  the  spot  for  days  together.  No  attempt  had  been 
made  before  my  arrival  to  raise  potatoes,  or  cabbages,  and  we 
obtained  these,  grapes,  and  other  fruit,  from  Los  Angelos,  in 
wagons — a  distance  of  two  hundred  and  eighty-five  miles. 

While  at  this  post,  the  United  States  Astronomical  party 
made  their  observations  to  determine  the  longitude  of  the  point 
where  the  35th  parallel  of  North  Latitude  touched  the  Colo- 
rado river,  a  short  distance  below  the  Fort.  During  their  stay 
the  Secession  movement  was  inaugurated.  MR.  MOWRY,  the  U, 


56 

S.  Boundary  Commissioner,  had  sent  to  the  Fort  a  large  num- 
ber of  young  gentlemen,  who  favored  the  movement  and  dis- 
cussed the  matter  freely,  and,  in  their  letters  to  the  newspapers 
of  San  Francisco,  giving  the  on  dits  of  Fort  Mojave,  they  made 
repeated  mention  of  my  devotion  and  attachment  to  the  Union 
"under  all  circumstances,"  as  they  expressed  it.  Maj.  Gen. 
WINITELD  S.  HANCOCK,  being  Quarter  Master  at  Los  Angelos,  in 
his  letters,  kindly  kept  me  advised  of  the  progress  of  this  move- 
ment, and  he  too  is  aware  of  my  sentiments,  from  my  letters. 

Officers  have  served  faithfully  in  such  isolated  posts  as  FORTS 
DALLES  and  MOJAVE,  and  put  up  with  great  inconveniences  and 
even  sufferings  ;  but  they  have  endured  them  the  more  willingly 
from  the  knowledge  that  in  after  years  such  services  have  al- 
ways been  taken  into  consideration,  greatly  to  the  advantage  of 
those  who  remained  faithfully  at  their  posts.  But  in  my  case, 
the  sacrifices,  the  hard  and  faithful  services,  even  the  loyal  sen- 
timents entertained  by  me,  count  as  nothing  :  I  cannot  get  even 
a  hearing.  Is  this  right  after  nearly  twenty-four  years  of  faith- 
ful service?  I  appeal  to  SENATORS  and  LEGISLATORS  of  the 
IT.  S.  Congress,  and  ask  if  this  is  proper  ? 

In  1861,  Brig.  Gen.  SUMNER  assumed  Command  of  the  De- 
partment of  California,  when  he  ordered  Fort  Mojave  to  be 
evacuated,  directing  me  to  send  the  property  and  the  Company 
of  the  6th  Infantry  to  Los  Angelos,  and  to  proceed  to  San  Di- 
ego with  my  Company  over  land,  making  the  march  over  four 
hundred  miles.  I  reached  San  Diego  in  June,  and  the  follow- 
ing November  embarked  my  Company  for  New  York,  and 
thence  proceeded  to  Washington  City,  and  arrived  there  on  the 
19th  of  December,  1861. 

I  found  I  had  been  promoted  a  Major  of  the  7th  Infantry,  but 
several  Companies  of  this  Regiment  were  on  parole,  and  as  I 
preferred  active  service,  sought  duty  with  the  Army  of  the  Po- 
tolnac,  and  was  assigned  to  Brig.  Gen.  ANDREW  PORTER'S  Staff, 
and  appointed  by  him  an  Assistant  Inspector  General  in  the 
Provost  Marshal  General's  Department.  While  around  Wash- 
ington, I  made  several  efforts  with  MR.  STANTON  and  Brier.  Gen. 
MARCY,  Chief  of  Staff,  to  get  the  7th  Infantry  exchanged,  with 


57 

the  expectation  of  having  the  command  of  them  in  the  field. 
Their  exchange  seemed  so  probable  that  I  declined  opportuni- 
ties where  I  might  have  obtained  the  rank  of  Colonel  and  Coni- 
*mand  of  a  Volunteer  Regiment.  The  Southern  Confederation, 
however,  placed  obstacles  in  the  way,  and  I  entered  the  Penin- 
sular Campaign  without  them.  While  the  Army  lay  at  Harri- 
son's Landing,  I  obtained  from  GENERALS  MCCLELLAN,  FRANK- 
LIN, and  BARRY,  strong  letters  of  recommendation  to  Gov.  CUR- 
TIN,  as  to  my  qualifications  for  Commanding  a  Regiment,  hav- 
ing previously  had  a  conversation  with  the  Governor,  who  ex- 
pressed a  preference  for  Regular  Officers  to  Command  Volun- 
unteers  ;  but,  he  said,  the  War  Department  positively  declined 
letting  him  have  them.  I  obtained  the  necessary  permission, 
and  soon  ascertained  that  political  recommendations  were  worth 
much  more  than  the  very  best  certificates  of  qualifications  for 
the  duty,  and  dropped  the  matter,  for  I  have  nev^r  sought  any 
advancement  on  my  political  merits,  and  have  never  troubled 
MR.  LINCOLN'S  Administration,  in  any  way,  for  promotion. 

As  the  Army  of  the  Potomac  left  Fortress  Monroe  for  York- 
town,  Ya.,  I  had  the  honor  to  be  appointed  COMMANDANT  OF 
GENERAL  HEADQUARTERS,  and  in  this  capacity  served  during  the 
whole  of  the  Peninsular  and  the  Maryland  Campaigns ;  was  re- 
tained by  GENERALS  BURNSIDE  and  HOOKER,  until  my  health,  (an 
obstinate  impetigo,  irritated  by  exposure  to  the  weather)  obliged 
me  to  seek  in-door  duty. 

In  the  Peninsula,  I  had  under  my  Command  five  Companies 
of  Volunteers,  whose  duties  were  to  keep  faithful  watch  over  the 
tents  of  the  several  officers  at  General  Headquarters  and  the 
important  papers  in  their  possession,  particularly,  when  the 
officers  were  absent  from  camp  discharging  their  duties  ;  also, 
to  escort  the  General  Headquarters'  wagon  train  when  on  the 
march  and  prevent  the  official  papers  from  being  captured. 
This  small  Battalion  performed  its  duties  most  faithfully  and  ef- 
ficiently, and  on  several  occasions  it  was  held  in  readiness  to 
engage  with  the  enemy,  when  near  the  James  River,  in  the  march 
from  the  Chickahominy. 

This  Battalion  and  a  few  troops  under  the  Provost  Marshal 


58 

General,  were  all  that  were  left  with  General  McCLELLAN  on  his 
arrival  at  Alexandria,  Va.,  and  scarcely  had  he  encamped,  before 
I  was  ordered  to  report  to  Brigadier  General  HATJPT,  in  .charge 
of  Railways,  with  all  the  available  troops  at  General  Headquar- 
ters, and  was  sent  to  Fairfax  Railroad  Station,  to  protect  the 
supplies  there  for  General  POPE'S  Army.  At  the  time,  this  Army 
was  falling  back  towards  Washington,  and  the  wounded  were 
sent  here  for  removal,  in  the  cars,  to  Alexandria.  My  command 
was  busily  employed  for  three  days  at  this  camp,  and,  in  the  mean- 
time, General  McCLELLAN  was  ordered  to  Washington  and 
required  my  services.  Although  tKere  had  now  been  collected 
over  one  thousand  volunteers  in  the  camp,  exclusive  of  the  Gen- 
eral Headquarters'  troops,  yet  most  of  them  had  just  been  defeated 
and  felt  unsafe  in  that  camp,  and  I  felt  apprehensive  they  would 
retire  if  an  opportunity  permitted.  In  an  interview  with  General 
POPE'S  Assistant  Adjutant  General,  I  gave  him  my  views,  and 
he  thought  I  ought  to  stay,  and  I  did  not  leave  until  I  had 
ascertained  that  the  enemy  during  the  night  had  passed  along- 
General  POPE'S  right  towards  Leesburg,  and  a  sick  soldier  came 
into  my  camp  who  had  just  come  from  the  intrenchments  at 
Mannassas  without  seeing  a  rebel  soldier.  With  this  informa- 
tion I  felt  at  liberty  to  depart,  but  learnt  subsequently,  that,  in  a  few 
hours  after,  the  volunteers  withdrew,  leaving  some  employees  at 
work  loading  cars  with  the  surplus  provisions  which  were  ordered 
to  the  rear.  I  had  indicated,  soon  after  my  arrival,  to  General 
HAUPT  that  we  had  sufficient  supplies  in  that  camp,  and  requested 
him  to  send  us  empty  cars  to  enable  us  to  dispatch  the  wounded 
promptly,  which  he  did  on  learning  my  reasons.  On  our  return 
to  Alexandria,  we  found  that  the  General  Jleadquarters  had 
removed,  and  we  followed  on  to  Washington,  but  in  a  few  days 
General  McCLELLAN  was  again  placed  in  Command,  and  ad- 
vanced rapidly  towards  LEE'S  Army,  then  at  Frederick,  Md., 

and   THE    BATTLES  OF  SOUTH  MOUNTAIN   AND  4NTIETAM    SOOn    fol- 

lowed. 

In  this  Maryland  Campaign,  Capt.  WELDEN'S  Company  of 
19th  Regiment  of  Regular  Infantry,  and  the  93d  New  York  Vol- 
unteers were  placed  under  my  charge,  as  the  General  Headquar- 


•     59 

ters'  Guard,  and  rendered  efficient  aid.  The  Army  Corps,  when 
they  had  fallen  back  to  Washington,  did  not  get  time  to  refit 
and  replace  the  articles  lost  in  their  retreat,  and  before  entering 
Virginia  again,  it  was  but  proper  that  their  necessary  wants 
should  be  supplied.  This  occasioned  some  delay,  but  gave  offi- 
cers a  fine  opportunity  to  instruct  their  commands.  I  superin- 
tended the  drills  of  Gen.  Headquarters'  Guard, and  had  the  satis- 
faction of  seeing  the  men  improve  rapidly,  and  the  officers  feel 
pride  in  acquiring  a  knowledge  of  their  duties.  Subsequently, 
these  officers  expressed,  in  a  substantial  form,  their  appreciation 
of  my  services,  by  presenting  me  through  the  Colonel  of  the 
Regiment,  JOHN  S.  CROCKER,  a  very  handsome  sword,  silver  hilt, 
having  a  silver  and  also  a  bronze  scabbard,  a  serviceable  sword 
belt,  a  crimson  sash  and  several  sword  knots.  These  were 
delivered,  in  the  presence  of  Major  Generals  BURNSIDE,  HOOKER 
and  SICKELS,  Brig.  Gen.  BUFORD  and  many  other  Officers  of  the 
Army  of  the  Potomac,  accompanied  with  interesting  remarks 
on  behalf  of  the  donors.  On  the  silver  scabbard  was  in- 
scribed : 

Presented  to 

MAJOR  GRANVIIJL,E  O.  HALLEE 
7th  Inft.  U.  S.  A.  Commanding  Gen'l  Head  Quarters 

by  the 

Officers  of  the  93rd  N.  Y.  Volunteers, 

Head  Quarters'  Guard,  Army  of  the  Potomac, 

As  a  token  of    regard    for  his  social  qualities    as   a 

Gentleman  and  his  Military  ability  as  an  Officer. 

Camp  near  Falmouth,  Va.,  January  1st,  1863. 

Crossing  the  Potomac,  at  Berlin,  Md.  the  Army  again  re- 
sumed the  invasion  of  Virginia,  and  while  marching  successfully 
towards  Culpepper,  taking  possession  of  the  gaps  in  the  moun- 
tains as  we  advanced,  we  were  told  that  we  might  expect  a  bat- 
tle in  four  or  five  days,  and  that  it  should  be  on  ground  of  our 
General's  own  choosing.  The  army  was  in  high  spirits,  and 
had  never  before  been  in  such  perfect  fighting  order,  never  better 
drilled,  and  never  felt  more  confidence  in  their  ability  to  defeat 
the  Rebels  in  an  open  field.  But  suddenly,  at  midnight,  a 
Bearer  of  dispatches  arrived  from  Washington  with  orders  for 


60 

General  McCLELLAN  to  turn  over  the  command  to  Major  Gen. 
BUENSIDE.  The  news  astounded  all !  The  blow  fell  upon  the 
army,  of  the  Potomac,  and  they  gave  unmistakable  evidences 
of  their  grief.  Thinking  only  of  his  country's  success,  Gen. 
MoCLELLAN  encouraged  Gen.  BUENSIDE  to  take  the  command, 
and  offered  to  remain  and  assist  him  in  the  approaching  battle. 
Gen.  BUENSIDE  however  changed  the  whole  plan  of  campaign, 
and  expected  to  reach  Kichmond  by  the  Fredericksburg  route. 
He  arrived  before  this  city,  but  found  his  pontoons  were  not  on 
hand,  and  the  delays  here  were  fatal  to  his  plan.  Before  he 
crossed,  the  enemy  had  time  to  throw  up  fortifications,  and  his 
Army  was  defeated  with  terrible  loss,  without  gaining  a  single 
advantage  to  console  us  for  the  misfortune.  Croaking  and 
jealousies,  the  bane  of  an  Army,  could  now  be  recognized,  and 
Gen.  BUENSIDE'S  usefulness  was  destroyed.  Gen.  HOOKER  suc- 
ceeded to  the  command,  but  before  he  was  prepared  to  cross 
the  Rappahannock,  I  had  left  the  field  on  account  of  my  health. 
The  failure  at  Chancellorsville  enabled  Gen.  LEE  to  invade 
Maryland  and  Pennsylvania  the  second  time. 

THE  SECOND    INVASION  OF  PENNSYLVANIA. 

I  was  in  York,  Pa.,  when  the  advance  of  the  Confederate 
Army  entered  Chambersburg,  and  a  telegram  from  Governor 
CUETIN  informed  the  Citizens  that  the  Enemy  were  expected  to 
advance  on  Harrisburg  on  the  next  day.  Next  morning  I  has- 
tened to  that  place  and  reported  to  Major  Gen.  COUCH,  Com- 
manding the  Department,  in  hopes  that  I  might  be  able  to  as- 
sist him  in  organizing  for  the  defence  of  that  Capital.  The 
General  immediately  placed  me  on  duty  as  an  Extra  Aid-de- 
Camp  on  his  Staff,  and  sent  me  into  York  and  Adams  Counties 
to  direct  military  operations  in  that  District. 

I  hastened  to  York,  where  a  Committee  of  Safety  had  been 
organized,  and  proposed  that  all  the  people  be  aroused  and 
called  upon  to  defend  their  firesides. — To  get  as  many  persons 
to  enlist  in  the  "  six  months'  service,"  or  "  for  the  emergency" 
as  would  repair  to  Harrisburg,  and  class  the  rest  into  Compa- 
nies of  "  HOME  GUAEDS,"  having  men  from  sixty  to  forty-five 


61 

in  first  class ;  from  forty-five  to^  thirty  in  second  class  ;  and 
from  thirty  to  fifteen  in  the  third  class,  so  that  age  might  ex- 
clude none.  Each  one  to  report  what  fowling  piece  or  other 
arms  he  might  have,  and  have  his  name  registered  with  descrip- 
tion of  the  arms.  Thus  to  have  the  actual  force  that  could  be 
relied  upon  organized,  and  to  have  the  arms  and  ammunition 
ready.  But  I  was  particularly  urgent  upon  the  Committee  to 
organize  a  command  of  efficient  Scout*  and  also  of  Pioneer*. 
The  former  to  go  to  the  front  and  keep  advised  of  the  enemy's 
movements  and  communicate  them  to  the  Headquarters,  and 
the  latter  to  obstruct  the  roads,  especially  the  mountain  roads. 
I  directed  that  trees  should  be  felled  into  the  roads  from  the 
one  side,  so  as  to  allow  a  wagon  barely  room  to  pass  along  on 
the  other  side  of  the  way,  then  hack  the  trees  on  this  side  until 
nearly  ready  to  fall  over  the  road,  so  that  in  a  few  minutes 
they  might  be  feUed  and  the  road  be  made  impassable  to  the 
enemy's  Cavalry  and  Artillery. 

This  latter  party  had  not  been  organized,  when  I  endeavored 
to  get  the  members  of  the  87th  Penn.  Vols.,  who,  having  es- 
caped from  the  disastrous  affair  at  Winchester,  Va.,  by  various 
routes,  had  returned  to  their  homes  in  York  and  Adams  Coun- 
ties, and  were  ordered  by  rne  to  rendezvous  in  York,  and  were 
in  charge  of  their  Lieut.  Colonel.  On  the  23d  June,  I  tele- 
graphed the  Committee  of  Safety  to  explain  my  plan  to  Lieut. 
Col.  STAHLE  and  say  he  was  authorized  to  obstruct  the  roads 
towards  Carlisle,  particularly  the  Conewago  mountain  roads, 
but  received  the  following  telegram  : 

"YORK,  June  25th,  1863. 
••  Mijor  JI<  dler,  Gettysburg  : 

"  Lieut.  Col.  STAHLE  has  received  orders  from  Gen.  MILROY.  We  requested 
"  Gen.  SCHENK  that  he  and  his  men  be  retained  here.  The  reply  was  Maj.  Gen. 
1 '  MILROY  has  orders  to  report  with  all  his  command  at  Baltimore,  and  the  troops 
"  at  York  must  join  him. 

[Signed]  "JOHN  GIBSON, 

'•Sec>.  of  Safety  Committee." 

The  object  here  was  to  prevent  the  enemy  from  invading 
York  from  the  direction  of  Carlisle,  but  in!like  manner,  it  would 


62 

prevent  the  enemy  reaching  Carlisle  from  York.  This  work 
was  not  attended  to,  and  the  failure  is  of  importance,  inasmuch, 
as  JIaj.  Gen.  EARLY  marched  his  Confederate  Division,  when  he 
evacuated  York,  by  this  very  route  to  Dillsburg.  It  is  a  matter 
of  History  that  the  arrival  of  this  Division  on  the  battle  ground 
at  Gettysburg,  during  Wednesday's  fighting,  to  the  right  but 
considerably  in  rear  of  Gen.  HOWARD'S  line,  obliged  him  to 
change  his  line  and  fall  back  to  Cemetery  hill,  which  resulted 
in  the  enemy  capturing  about  3,000  of  our  men.  Had  the 
obstructions  been  attended  to,  the  command  of  Gen.  EARLY 
would  have  been  delayed  for  hours,  perhaps  .lost  all  of  Wednes- 
day, and  these  barriers  would  have  made  an  important  deten- 
tion in  favor  of  the  Army  of  the  Potomac. 

Having  made  preliminary  arrangements  in  York,  and  studied 
the  grounds  about  Wrightsville  with  a  view  to  defend  th^Co- 
lumbia  bridge,  I  hastened  to  Gettysburg  to  make  some  neces- 
sary arrangements  there.  I  arrived  just  in  time.  The  next 
morning,  June  20th,  many  droves  of  horses  came  into  Gettys- 
burg from  the  neighborhood  of  Waynesboro,  and  the  Eiders 
gave  out  exaggerated  statements  of  the  enemy's  numbers  and 
their  movements.  I  was  induced  to  ride  out  to  the  Monterey 
House,  on  the  mountain  top,  to  get  accurate  information.  I  as- 
certained there  that  a  force  of  about  one  hundred  Kebel 
Cavalry  were  then  at  the  foot  of  the  West  slope  of  South  Moun- 
tain, searching  for  horses.  I  called  upon  the  farmers  around  to 
turn  out  and  block  up  the  roads  by  felling  trees,  which  they 
did  in  good  earnest.  However  next  day,  before  a  party  of 
armed  Citizens  sent  from  Gettysburg  had  reached  the  Monte- 
rey House,  a  small  party*  of  the  enemy's  mounted  Infantry  on 
foot,  leading  their  horses,  worked  their  way  up  to  that  place 
through  the  woods,  driving  in  our  pickets,  who  had  pistols  only, 
while  the  mass  of  them  passed  northward  and  crossed  the 
mountain  at  Cold  Springs,  which  had  not  been  obstructed,  and 
swept  through  the  Western  end  of  Adams  County,  by  the 
"  Tract"  road.  They  observed  Captain  BELL'S  troops  advanc- 


*Mr.  Phillips  of  Wayuesboro,  reported  to  me  that  this  body  ol'  the  enemy  was  at  least  three 
thousand  strong,  for  he  had  seen  them  with  his  glass.  Showing  how  liable  respectable  witnesses 
are  to  deceive  themselves. 


63 

ing,  but  part  of  his  force  was  concealed,  so  they  could  not  tell 
his  number — he  having  then  the  available  force  I  could  collect 
at  the  moment,  (about  twenty-five  City  Troop,  and  fifteen  Ad- 
ams County  Cavalry,)  with  which  he  was  sent  to  reconnoitre. 
The  enemy  was  taken  by  surprise  and  recrossed  the  mountain, 
taking  those  at  Monterey  with  them,  and  without  pausing  a  mo- 
ment at  Fairfield,  notwithstanding  Professor  JACOBS  of  Gettys- 
burg gives  them  a  two  hours'  stop  at  that  village,  in  his  little 
book  entitled  "  Notes  of  the  Eebel  Invasion." 

From  this  time  until  June  26th,  Captain  BELL'S  available 
force,  including  the  City  Troop,  were  kept  in  constant  motjon, 
and  all  performed  their  duty  with  commendable  zeal  and  abil- 
ity, and  kept  me,  and  therefore  Maj.  Gen.  COUCH,  fully  advised 
of  the  movements  of  the  enemy.  These  troops  were  all  that 
rendered  me  any  assistance.  The  26th  Keg.  Penn.  Vol.  Militia 
was,  indeed,  sent  to  my  aid,  but  I  would  gladly  have  passed  over 
their  misfortunes,  but  for  the  remarkable  statements  made  by 
the  Rov.  M.  JACOBS,  Professor  of  Mathematics  and  Chemistry 
in  Pennsylvania  College,  at  Gettysburg,  who  1ms  assumed  to 
give  the  Reader  of  his  "  NOTES"  a  true  account  of  the  great  bat- 
tle fought  there  and  of  my  preliminary  efforts  to  arrest  the 
march  of  the  Confederate  Troops. 

THE  TWENTY-SIXTH  PENNSYLVANIA  MILITIA. 

A  young  gentleman,  connected  Avith  the  Christian  Associa- 
tion, who  professed  to  have  been  with  this  Regiment,  and  who 
was  represented  to  me  as  a  Clergyman,  very  coolly  informed  a 
near  relative  of  mine,  that  Major  HALLER  had  laid  a  trap  by 
which  this  Regiment  would  have  fallen,  as  Prisoners,  into  the 
hands  of  the  Rebels,  or  have  been  cut  to  pieces,  but  for  the 
Colonel's  assuming  responsibility  and  leading  the  Regiment  out 
of  the  trap.  And  Professor  JACOBS  has  suggested  that  my  con- 
duct was  owing  to  incapacity  for  th,e  position  I  then  held,  or  to 
the  indifference  I  felt  for  the  result  of  our  arms.  He  then  in- 
forms his  Readers  that  soon  after  uttering  the  remark  that 
"  He  (I)  would  firxt  ji<j}il  f/ta  Iti'lvl*,  h»!  a/'fcr  ilic  war,  ///<:  Admin- 
istration" I  was  dismissed  for  "  disloyal  conduct  and  the  ut- 


64 

terance  of  disloyal  sentiments,"  and  "  the  golden  opportunity 
for  efficient  preparation"  to  resist  the  enemy  was  allowed  to 
pass  away. 

Now  as  I  had  proposed  to  arm  the  people  and  oppose  the 
Enemy  with  deadly  weapons,  the  logical  deduction,  from  his 
quotation,  is,  that  after  the  war  I  intended  to  fight  the  adminis- 
tration with  deadly  weapons,  for  which  I  was  dismissed  by  the 
War  Department.  And  the  Eeader's  mind  now  being  poisoned 
against  Major  HALLEEhe  tells  how  I  ordered  the  26th  Eegiment 
"  although  contrary  to  the  earnest  remonstrance  of  Jennings, 
Colonel,  &c."  to  the  front  and  how  the  Colonel  "seeing  the  trap 
into  which  he  had  been  led"  extricated  his  men,  after  having 
nearly  all  of  his  pickets  captured,  forty  in  number,  first,  and 
then  losing  one  hundred  and  twenty  more  of  the  regiment  near 
Hunterstown  on  his  retreat.  In  this  statement,  I  have  en- 
deavored to  present  fairly  the  substance  of  two  Professing 
Christians'  statements,  especially  the  substance  of  Professor  JA- 
COBS' language  in  his  book. 

I  will  therefore  give  a  few  points  to  aid  the  Header's  judg- 
ment : 

1st.  Gov,  CURTIN  and  Gen.  COUCH  fully  believed  that  EWELL'S 
Corps  of  Confederate  troops,  was  advancing  on  Harrisburg  to 
capture  the  Capital  of  Pennsylvania,  and  very  few  people,  if  any, 
in  the  State,  doubted  this. 

2d.  No  one  would  have  supposed  that  Gen.  EWELL  would, 
while  threatening  Harrisburg,  send  off  a  single  Division  to  spend 
the  4th  day  of  July  in  the  City  of  Philadelphia. 

3d.  It  was  to  be  expected  that  the  Enemy  would  send  out 
small  parties  to  collect  Provisions  and  Forage  from  our  Citi- 
zens' granaries,  gather  up  Horses  and  Cattle,  and  obtain  infor- 
mation of  the  movements  of  our  Forces. 

4th.  It  was  my  duty  to  protect,  as  far  as  the  means  at  my 
hand  would  permit,  the  Counties  of  Adams  and  York  from  these 
little  incursions. 

5th.  The  only  means  at  my  hand  on  which  I  could  rely,  was 
Captain  EGBERT  BELL'S  enlisted  men,  then  forming  a  Company, 
having  about  thirty-three  private  horses,  owned  by  the  soldiers, 


65 

and  about  seven  horses  taken  by  the  Deputy  Provost  Marshal 
from  Deserters  or  Stragglers  from  the  U.  S.  Army,  found  at 
Gettysburg — say  forty  in  all ;  and  Ensign  SAMUEL  J.  RANDALL'S 
Detachment  of  about  forty-five  young  gentlemen  from  Philadel- 
phia, of  the  1st  City  Troop,  well  mounted,  who  paid  their  per- 
sonal expenses,  and  served  without  being  mustered  into  the  Mil- 
itary Service. 

Besides  these,  Major  CHARLES  McL.  KNOX,  of  the  9th  N.  Y. 
Vol.  Cavalry,  an  experienced  and  valuable  officer,  who  was  an 
invalid,  and  on  sick  furlough,  but  hearing  that  his  native  hills 
(he  was  born  near  Gettysburg)  were  invaded,  and  knowing  ev- 
ery spot  of  ground  about  those  hills,  hastened  to  Gettysburg  and 
offered  me  his  services.  Also  Captain  SAMUEL  L.  YOUNG,  an 
Attorney-at-Law,  of  Beading,  Pa.,  who  had  acquired  experience 
on  the  Staff  of  Maj.  Gen.  KEIM,  and  whose  assistance  was  also 
valuable. 

The  26th  Penn.  Militia  came  and  went  attended  with  misfor- 
tunes. I  will  now  give  the  official  history  as  far  as  I  have  it,  of 
this  regiment. 

General  COUCH'S  written  instructions  were  as  follows  : 

"  Colonel  JENNINGS  will  use  his  best  efforts  to  hold  the  country,  harrass  the 
"enemy, — attacking  him  at  exposed  points  or  falling  back  in  order — and  ad- 
vancing his  force  or  part 'of  it, 'making  flank  attacks  etc.,  doing  everything  in 
' '  his  power  to  weaken,  mislead  the  enemy  and  protect  the  country. " 

I  did  not  ask  for  a  Kegiment,  for  I  believed  all  General  COUCH'S 
troops  would  be  required  for  the  defence  of  Harrisburg.  But 
he  telegraphed  :  "  Would  it  do  to  send  a  Regiment  of  Infantry 
"  to  Gettysburg  ?"  To  which  I  answered  ;  "  Please  send  a 
"  Regiment,  it  will  restore  confidence  and  rally  the  people  to 
"take  arms."  The  third  day  after,  I  received  the  following 

note  : 

"  SWIFT  RUN  HTT.T.,  June  24th  1863. 
"Major  G.  0.  Holler, 

"  DEAB  SIB  :    We  have  met  with  an  accident  at  this  point ;  the  cars  hvaing 
"  run  off  the  track.     We  sustained  no  injury  further  than  damage  having  been 
"  done  the  track  and  several  cars,  I  shall  camp  here  and  await  your  orders." 
Yours  Kespectfully, 

(Signed)  "W.  W.  JENNINGS, 

«' Colonel  Commanding  26th  Regiment  Pa.,  Militia." 


66 

I  authorized  him  to  impress  teams  to  bring  up  his  baggage, 
and  march  to  Gettysburg,  if  the  railroad  was  not  repaired  when 
he  would  be  ready  to  move,  next  morning. 

At  this  time,  Captain  YOUNG  had  voluntarily  posted  himself 
at  Cashtown  to  collect  information  and  superintend  the  scouting 
on  the  mountain.  At  8^  o'clock  P.  M.  June  24th,  he  dispatched 
a  note  saying :  "  I  advanced  two  miles — saw  rebel  Cavalry." 
He  gives  a  report  that  there  are  Infantry,  Artillery,  and  Cavalry 
on  the  top  of  the  mountain  and  adds  :  "  the  report  seems  to  be 
reliable." 

This  note  arrived  about  11  o'clock  at  night,  when  I  telegraphed 
General  COUCH,  and  arranged  with  Major  KNOX,  to  reconnoiter 
in  force,  and  communicated  the  necessary  orders  to  secure  an 
early  start  in  the  morning.  This  done,  I  then  dispatched  the 
following  note  to  Col.  JENNINGS,  Commanding  26th  Pa.  Militia. 

G-ETTYSBERG,  Pa.,  June  26th  1863.  } 
(2  o'clock  A.  M.)      \ 

Colonel :  Get  the  cars  ready  to  return  to  Hanover  if  possible  on  receipt  of  this  : 
if  not,  impress  wagons  and  be  ready  to  fall  back  in  a  moment's  notice. 

The  enemy  in  force,  Artillery,  Infantry,  and  Cavalry  have  already  possession  of 
the  mountain  pass  and  no  doubt  intend  marching  here,  perhaps  to  day. 

By  Command  of  MAJOK  GEN.  COUCH. 

June  25th.  During  this  morning,  General  COUCH  telegraphed 
me,  "  Let  me  hear  the  result  of  your  reconnoissance  of  this  A. 
M."  To  this  I  answered,  as  follows  :  "  Eebels  hold  the  moun- 
tain but  have  not  advanced.  Our  Cavalry,  under  Major  KNOX, 
are  cautiously  advancing  and  observing.  No  other  official 
report.  Unreliable  report  says  they  are  fortifying." 

Major  KNOX,  it  seems,  approached  within  two  hundred 
yards  of  the  top  of  the  mountain,  when  he  was  fired  on  by 
Infantry.  In  his  report  he  says  :  "I  think  it  very  suspicious 
"  that  I  have  not  found  their  Cavalry,  and  my  opinion  is  that 
"  the  rebels  will  move  by  another  road  than  the  turnpike 
"  and  that  their  Cavalry  will  precede  them,  hence  I  will  scout  cdl 
"  the  roads  etc."  Major  KNOX  not  finding  any  Kebel  troops  else- 
where, inferred  that  this  party  was  a  "  Flanking  Brigade." 

This  was  important  news.  It  indicated  that  the  rebel  forces 
were  securing  the  mountain  passes  in  the  direction  of  the  Army 


67 

of  the  Potomac,  to  prevent  their  line  of  retreat  as  well  as  commu- 
nication beting  cut  off,  by  our  crossing  the  mountains.  All  the 
information  gathered  this  day  only  confirmed  this  hypothesis. 
I  telegraphed  to  General  COUCH  this  day  ;  "  Our  information  indi- 
"  cates  that  rebels  have  evacuated  Hagerstown,  even  Waynes- 
"  boro',  going  North.  Suppose  our  opponents  to  be  a  flanking 
"  brigade."  As  soon  as  General  COUCH,  on  the  night  of  the  24th, 
received  'my  telegram  that  the  enemy  was  on  the  top  of  the 
mountain,  he  telegraphed  back  as  follows  :  "  It  would  be  well  if 
"  you  could  find  out  what  the  Kebels  are  doing.  Can't  you  get 
<'  some  Riflemen  on  their  flanks  in  the  mountain  ?" 

On  the  afternoon  of  the  25th  of  June,  believing  the  Enemy 
would  not  advance,  I  endeavored  to  conform  to  the  General's 
suggestion.  Accordingly  I  wrote  as  follows  : 

DEPARTMENT  OF  THE  SUSQUEHANNA,      \ 
GETTYSBURG,  PA.,  June  25th,  1863.  \ 
( \>l.  W.  W.  Jennings,  Commanding  26th  Penn.  Militia  : 

COLONEL  :  Can  you  raise  a  party  of  reliable  riflemen  who  dare  go  into  the  moun- 
tain, on  the  flank  of  the  rebels,  to  discover  what  they  are  doing  and  harrass 
them  ?  Please  report  quickly  how  many  can  be  raised. 

By  command  of  MAJOR  GEN.  COUCH. 

Colonel  JENNINGS  promptly  replied  as  follows : 

"  SWIFT  RUN  HILL,  June  25th,  1863. 
"2b  Major  G.   0.    Hatter: 

"  DEAR  SIR  :  I  will  send  one  hundred  (100)  men  in  charge  of  Capt.  LEMUEL 
' '  MOYER — who  will  march  directly  and  report  to  you  for  further  orders. " 

Believing  that  Colonel  JENNINGS  had  more  than  one  hundred 
old  soldiers — two  years'  men  and  nine  months'  men — in  his 
Eegiment,  I  congratulated  myself  on  having  their  assistance, 
taking  it  for  granted  he  would  send  no  other  troops  for  the  im- 
portant service  proposed.  I  also  wrote  to  the  Colonel  to  "  come 
"  up.  The  cars  have  been  ordered  to  your  camp,  at  5.30 
"  o'clock, -A.  M.,  to  bring  your  command  to  this  place  (Gettys- 
"  burg).  Please  be  ready  and  hasten  the  loading,  so  as  to  be 
"  here  before  the  hour  for  the  passenger  cars  to  depart.  The 
"  Eegiment  will  encamp  about  three  miles  from  town,  towards 
"  the  mountain,  in  supporting  distance!  of  the  Sharp  Shooters. 
"  By  command  of  MAJ,  GEN.  COUCH."  : 


68 

The  Colonel  had  due  notice  of  the  destination  of  his  Regi- 
ment  in  writing  thus  early,  but  he  did  not  remonstrate  in  writ- 
ing or  otherwise  to  my  knowledge.  Strange  to  say  the  provi- 
sions for  this  Regiment  were  not,  for  some  reason,  brought  on 
with  the  men,  and  they  were  without  rations.  The  one  hun- 
dred men  had  no  suppers,  nor  anything  to  subsist  upon  in  the 
mountains.  Late  as  the  hour  was  (near  midnight)  through  the 
assistance  of  members  of  the  Committee  of  Safety,  some  rations 
were  procured.  Captain  MOYEB  having  now  his  Command  pro- 
vided for  the  march,  called  for  instructions.  Our  guides  were 
there,  who  knew  a  by-path  to  the  hill,  at  Moonshour's  house. 
This  hill  is  precipitous  towards  the  Chambersburg  pike  and  be- 
comes a  formidable  position  to  the  enemy  on  the  turnpike  road, 
who,  being  in  a  gorge  between  the  mountains,  would  suffer  heav- 
ily, if  not  be  thrown  into  confusion,  by  a  handful  of  determined 
men.  I  soon  indicated  to  Captain  MOYEB,  on  the  map,  the 
route,  and  position  to  be  in  before  daylight,  and  what  was  ex- 
pected of  his  men. 

I  was  distressed  to  learn  from  Capt.  MOYEB,  after  all 'the  pains 
taken  to  get  the  right  kind  of  men,  that  the  Old  Soldiers  had 
been  left  in  Camp :  that  a  simple  detail  had  been  ordered  from 
each  company  of  "  ten  men  for  detached  service  :"  that  the  men 
he  had  brought  knew  nothing  of  deploying  or  acting  as  skir- 
mishers :  that  some  did  not  even  know  how  to  load,  for  the 
officers  had  not  yet  had  a  chance  to  drill  them.  Of  course  the 
expedition  was  deferred.  But  these  were  the  "  Picked  men  "  of 
Professor  JACOBS — the  reliable  riflemen  who  dare  go  into  the 
mountain  on  the  flanks  of  the  Rebels,  to  discover  what  they  are 
doing  and  harass  them,  of  the  Colonel  Commanding  the  Regi- 
ment. 

On  the  26th  June,  the  Regiment  arrived  and  Capt.  BELL  con- 
ducted it  to  the  Camping  ground  on  Marsh  Creek.  Before 
Capt.  BELL  left  the  Colonel,  in  his  Camp,  he  received  the  first 
news  of  a  Rebel  advance,  which  he  communicated  to  the 
Colonel,  saying  he  would  go  forward  and  see  what  it  might  be. 
Having  seen  a  party  of  Rebels  advancing  very  slowly,  he  re- 
turned to  the  Infantry  Camp,  from  whence  he  wrote  me  as  fol- 


69 

lows :  "  To  MAJOR  HALLEB.  Camp  of  Eegiment.  I  have  seen  the 
"  advance  of  the  Eebs  just  beyond  New  Salem — probably  50  or 
"  100.  (Signed)  E.  BELL,  Captain."  This  hundred  of  the  enemy 
was  all  that  we  knew  then  to  be  advancing.  But  the  Colonel 
expressed  a  want  of  confidence  in  his  men,  saying  if  he  only  had 
his  old  regiment  he  would  feel  safe  :  then  asked  how  he  could 
get  away  from  his  position.  Captain  BELL  replied  that  the  road 
to  Gettysburg  was  open  :  the  Colonel  answered  that  the  enemy 
would  overtake  him  before  he  got  there.  Captain  BELL  then 
inquired  which  way  he  wanted  to  go :  the  Colonel  answered 
Harrisburg  or  York,  when  Captain  BELL  pointed  out  the  way. 

Capt.  BELL  again  rode  to  the  front,  perhaps  too  miles,  to  get 
another  look  at  the  party  of  rebels  advancing.  Having  again 
seen  them,  he  came  back,  but  Col.  JENNINGS  and  his  Eegiment 
were  retreating  by  the  road  he  had  pointed  out,  and  were  half 
a  mile  off  already.  On  the  way  to  town,  Capt.  BELL  met  my  or- 
derly going  out  with  a  message  to  Col.  JENNINGS  to  come  in, 
when  the  Captain  informed  him  that  the  Eegiment  had  left. 

Now  we  had  reason  to  believe  that,  while  the  main  body  of 
Eebel  troops  would  hold  the  mountain  pass,  they  would  send 
into  the  valleys  just  such  parties  to  gather  horses,  etc.,  and  if  I 
had  been  in  Command  of  that  Eegiment,  I  should  have  consid- 
ered it  my  first  duty  to  ride  to  the  front  with  Captain  BELL,  and 
see  that  the  scouts  took  positions  to  ascertain  the  possible  num- 
ber approaching,  with  a  view  to  make  proper  disposition  of  my 
Eegiment,  to  meet  them,  or  retire,  as  the  case  required.  But 
the  Colonel,  without  attempting  to  look  after  the  fifty  or  one 
hundred  Eebels,  hurried  off  without  informing  me  of  his  unex- 
pected movement,  and  without  giving  any  orders  to  his  detach- 
ment which  he  had  left  in  Gettysburg  to  guard  the  cars,  which 
had  by  this  time  been  forwarded  by  the  Eailroad  Company, 
with  his  provisions.  The  slow  and  cautious  advance  of  the 
Enemy,  would  have  allowed  the  Eegiment  ample  time  to  reach 
Gettysburg  unmolested,  and  as  his  guard  to  the  subsistence 
stores — about  40  men — who  did  not  leave  until  after  I  did,  came 
away  without  loss,  I  have  no  reason  to  believe  that  his  Eegiment 
would  have  lost  a  single  man. 


70 

Now,  the  facts  in  the  case  show  that  Col.  JENNINGS  chose  his 
own  line  of  retreat,  moved  off  entirely  upon  his  own  responsi- 
bility, and  that  he  had  marched  a  half  mile  from  the  position  in 
which  I  placed  him,  while  the  enemy  were  yet  a  few  miles  off, 
without  the  loss  of  a  single  man.  As  a  matter  of  course,  then, 
what  happened  after  this  time  is  due  entirely  to  Col.  JENNINGS' 
management,  who  took  upon  himself  the  responsibility. 

This  Eegiment  marched  several  miles  unmolested,  but  then 
came  upon  a  marauding  party  of  fifty  or  sixty  Eebels  that  were 
gathering  horses  between  Mummasburg  and  Hunterstown,  and 
here  it  was  that  the  Kegiment  met  the  Rebels  first  and  last,  and 
Professor  JACOBS  says  they  lost  120  men,  but  none  I  believe 
killed  or  wounded.  The  suppers  which  the  Eegiment  missed 
the  night  before,  and  which  they  much  needed  on  this  evening, 
refreshed  the  hungry  soldiers  of  Major  Gen.  EAKLY'S  Eebel 
Division. 

Having  gathered  up  the  Public  Arms,  and  accoutrements, 
Brass  Gun,  etc.  at  Gettysburg,  and  sent  them  to  Hanover, 
where  the  public  property  in  my  charge  was  held  ready  for 
removal,  I  retreated  to  that  place  and  had  the  stores  promptly 
removed,  then  ordered  the  troops  to  proceed  to  York. 

The  citizens  of  Gettysburg,  at  my  request,  had  organized  a  Com- 
mittee of  Safety,  and  some  of  the  members  feeling  great  interest 
in  the  Military  proceedings,  spent  much  of  their  time  at  my 
quarters.  These  gentlemen  were  made  acquainted  with  the 
information  I  had  obtained  from  time  to  time,  and  the  object  of 
my  several  movements,  and  consequently,  are  at  this  date  im- 
portant witnesses  as  to  my  loyalty  and  my  zeal  for  the  service. 
It  happens  that  the  writers  of  the  several  letters,  which  I  sub- 
join, are  well  known  for  their  Eepublican  Sentiments,  and  their 
opinions  must  be  conclusive  to  all  who  know  them.  It  is  but 
justice  to  Professor  JACOBS  to  say  that  he  has  retracted  all  his 
offensive  remarks  as  to  my  conduct,  loyalty  and  zeal. 

Mr.  McCoNAUGHY's  zeal  for  the  success  of  the  Union  cause 
has  been  so  strongly  marked  by  his  acts,  that  his  testimony,  in 
my  favor,  is  the  more  strong  as  he  would  have  been  the  first  to 
take  alarm  at  any  act  of  disloyalty  on  my  part.  He  writes  : 


71 


GETTYSBURG,  October  29th,  1863. 


SIR  :  Having  been  constantly  in  intercourse  and  actively  co-operating  with 
Major  G.  O.  Haller,  while  on  duty  here  in  June  last,  as  aid  to  Major  Genl.  D.  N. 
Couch,  Commanding  theDept.  of  the  Susquehanna — I  cheerfully  state,  that,  Maj. 
Haller  was  constant  and  earnest  in  the  discharge  of  his  duties,  at  this  post. 

Not  only  was  there  neither  act  nor  expression  proceeding  from  him,  in  any 
manner  suggestive  of  disloyalty,  but  on  the  contrary  his  whole  bearing  and 
conduct  here  was  characterized  by  zeal  and  activity  as  an  officer.  From  my  in- 
timate knowledge  of  all  that  was  transpiring,  and  the  facts  which  furnished  the 
busis  for  his  action,  I  was  strongly  persuaded,  that,  his  proceedings  in  advancing 
the  26th  Kegiment,  (Col.  Jennings'),  were  justified  by  the  information  derived 
from  Cavalry  reconnoissances,  and  furnished  him  by  the  officers  in  charge  of  the 
scouting  operations. 

With  the  limited  forces  at  his  command,  Major  Haller's  whole  actions  im- 
pressed me  with  the  conviction,  that,  he  was  seeking  earnestly  to  do,  all  that  he 
could,  for  the  public  service  and  the  defeat  of  the  enemy,  and  thwarting  its 
movements. 

As  a  citizen  who  felt  a  very  intense  interest  for  the  success  of  the  Arms  of 
the  Union  and  the  rout  of  the  Kebel  forces  ;  and,  keenly  alive  to  any  thing, 
however  slight,  which  might  betray  a  want  of  loyalty  in  any  one  with  whom  I 
might  be  thrown  in  contact,  I  have  no  hesitation  in  thus  strongly  giving  expres- 
sion to  the  impressions  made  upon  me  in  my  intercourse  with  Major  Haller. 
Most  respectfully  and  truly, 

D.  McCONAUGHY. 

K.  G.  McCBEAEY  and  DAVID  WILLS,  Esquires,  write : 

GETTYSBUBG,  PA.,  Oct.  28,  1863. 

Maj.  G.  0.  Holler  : 

SIB  :  It  affords  me  pleasure  to  state  that  as  a  member  of  the  Committee  of 
Safety,  appointed  at  a  public  meeting  of  the  citizens  of  this  town,  in  June  last, 
I  was  frequently  at  your  quarters,  and  had  knowledge  of  the  efforts  made  by  you 
'  to  arrest  or  retard  the  progress  of  the  rebel  army  on  the  borders  of  our  county, 
by  organizing  the  citizens  as  "  Home  Guards"  and  otherwise,  and  to  testify  to 
the  zeal  and  earnestness  manifested  by  you  on  the  occasion,  and  that,  so  far  as 
my  observation  extended,  your  conduct  and  conversation  were  uniformly  such 
as  became  a  loyal  citizen  and  an  officer  of  the  United  States  Army. 

Very  respectfully  yours, 

E.  G.  McCKEARY. 


GETTYSBUBG,  PA.,  Oct.  29,  1863. 
Major  G.   0.  IloHer  : 

DEAE  SIR  :  I  fully  concur  with  Mr.  McCreary  in  the  substance  of  the  fore- 
going letter.  In  addition  I  take  the  liberty  to  add  that  I  told  you  I  was  sorry  to 
see  that  the  Democrats  of  our  town  did  not  attend  the  meeting  called  b- 


72 

Committee  of  Safety,  which  meeting  was  held  at  your  solicitation  for  the  purpose 
of  making  arrangements  for  the  organization  of  Home  Guards  for  border  defence. 
You  suggested  that  you  were  of  that  political  pursuasion  and  wished  to  meet  some 
of  the  prominent  men  of  that  party  to  endeavor  to  pursuade  them  to  unite  in 
the  efforts  making  to  repel  the  invaders,  and  that  they  should  fight  the  rebels 
first  and  after  that  they  could  attack  the  administration  in  a  legitimate  and  con- 
stitutional way.  I  know  that  you  made  every  effort  to  bring  about  a  concert  of 
action  here  for  the  purpose  of  organizing  the  Town  and  County  for  border  defence. 

I  remain  yours  truly, 

DAVID  WILLS. 

Captain  EGBERT  BELL,  of  Gettysburg,  also  writes : 

GETTYSBUKG,  PA.,  Oct.  29,  1863. 
Major  G.  0.  Hatter  : 

MAJOR  :  It  affords  me  great  pleasure  to  be  able  to  testify  to  the  earnestness 
and  zeal  you  displayed  in  June  last,  during  the  Rebel  invasion.  Having  access 
to  your  room  at  all  hours  day  and  night,  and  in  frequent  confidential  conversa- 
tions with  you,  I  have  no  hesitancy  in  saying  you  did  every  thing  you  could  do 
as  a  loyal  officer  of  the  Government  with  the  small  and  inaffective  force  you  had 
at  your  disposal  to  retard  the  advance  of  the  Rebels  east  of  the  South  Mountain, 
and  that  I  had  no  reason  to  doubt  your  loyalty  whatever,  and  was  very  much 
surprised  to  hear  of  your  being  dismissed  from  the  service.  If  I  can  be  of  any 
further  service  to  you  it  will  afford  me  great  pleasure. 

I  am  yours  most  obediently, 

ROBERT  BELL, 

Capt.  Adams  County  Scouts, 
(now  Co.  B,  21st  P.  V.  Cav. ) 

On  the  afternoon  of  the  27th  of  June,  the  scout  on  the  Ab- 
bottstown  road  came  in,  reporting  about  100  Eebel  Cavalry 
advancing  rapidly  towards  York,  and  no  other  troops  could  be 
seen  approaching  by  that  road.  As  the  Adams  County  Cavalry, 
by  purchases,  and  by  impressing  horses,  had  become  mounted, 
this  troop  now  numbered  over  60  men,  which  with  the  "  City 
Troop  "  exceeded  100  men.  Through  the  foresight  and  system 
of  discipline,  adopted  by  Surgeon  PALMER,  U.  S.  Vols.  in  charge 
of  the  U.  S.  Hospital  in  York,  I  found  about  225  Convalescent 
Soldiers  armed  and  equipped  for  service ;  besides  a  company  of 
volunteers  ("  Patapsco  Guards  ")  in  charge  of  the  public  build- 
ings and  property ;  and  a  few  of  the  87th  Penn.  Volunteers. 

^ith  this  force,  I  marched  to  the  West  end  of  York  to  keep  off 
me* 

Branding  parties,  until  the  hospital  stores  (in  very  large 


73 

quantities,)  might  be  removed,  and  the  rolling  stock,  at  the 
Depot,  could  be  sent  away.  This  movement  was  not  apprecia- 
ted by  the  Citizens,  who,  apprehensive  that  a  collision  might, 
subject  the  town  to  the  vengeance  of  the  enemy,  believed  it 
would  do  the  inhabitants  much  injury.  However,  information 
soon  came  that  the  whole  force,  which  invaded  Gettysburg,  was 
marching  to  York,  and  would  be  there  that  night.  This  scout 
had  even  been  in  General  GOKDON'S  presence,  and  had,  in  wri- 
ting, his  assurance  that  if  there  was  no  resistance  offered  at 
York,  all  the  private  property  would  be  respected.  He  assured 
the  scout  that  he,  himself,  had  over  3,000  men — and  the  scout 
thought  GORDON'S  Brigade  was  by  that  time  only  three  miles 
from  town.  This  scout,  MR.  FAUQUIER,  was  vouched  for,  by  MK. 
SAMUEL  SMALL,  as  an  honest  man,  and  what  he  stated  should  be 
believed.  On  this  state  of  facts,  I  withdrew  the  troops  to 
Wrightsville,  leaving  only  a  few  Cavalry  men  in  front  of  York, 
to  observe  the  approach  of  the  enemy,  and  report  the  time  of 
their  occupation.  They  remained  until  8.30  o'clock,  P.  M.,  but 
no  enemy  appeared.  Next  morning,  at  10  o'clock,  the  Division 
of  Major  Gen.  EARLY  entered,  and  quietly  took  possession, 
drawing  his  supplies  through  the  civil  authorities  of  York,  and, 
during  his  stay,  preserved  most  perfect  order,  strictly  prohibi- 
ting his  men  from  molesting  the  inhabitants  or  committing  dep- 
redations. 

Wrightsville  presented  a  melancholy  spectacle.  Hundreds  of 
loaded  wagons  were  awaiting  their  turn  to  cross  the  Columbia 
Bridge.  The  rolling  stock  of  several  of  the  Railroad  Companies 
was  crowded  together.  The  Locomotives  and  cars  had  to  be 
hauled  by  horse  power  across  the  bridge,  and  the  means  to 
transport  these  were  only  those  animals  used  for  the  ordinary 
demands  of  trade  at  that  place.  I  called  on  DR.  EVANS,  Presi- 
dent of  the  Bridge  Company,  who,  at  my  request,  dispensed 
with  tolls,  and  the  wagons  then  crossed  lively,  and  once  in  Co- 
lumbia, their  horses  were  impressed  to  haul  over  the  rolling 
stock,  and  thus  property  of  immense  value  was  promply 
secured. 

Colonel  J.  G.  FRICK,  Commanding  the  27th  Penn.,  Volunteer 


74 

Militia,  was  posted  in  front  of  Wrightsville  with  his  Regiment,  to 
whom  I  turned  over  the  troops  from  York.  Tools  were  pro- 
cured that  night,  and  early  next  morning  rifle  pits  were  thrown 
up,  and  the  approaches  carefully  examined,  to  station  troops  in 
effective  positions  to  defend  the  bridge  from  any  raid  sent  to 
destroy  it.  But  our  evil  genius,  GORDON'S  Brigade,  with  Cavalry, 
and  Artillery,  again  presented  itself,  and  while  getting  into  its 
position  and  reconnoitering  our  lines,  quite  a  number  of  shots 
were  exchanged,  and  sufficient  numbers  of  their  force  were  dis- 
played to  show  the  hopelessness  of  a  defence  of  Wrightsville, 
wherefore  the  troops  were  withdrawn,  and  the  span  of  the 
bridge,  (which  had  been  carefully  sawed  apart,  excepting  the 
arches,  which  were  charged  with  powder,  to  blow  them  to  peices 
and  let  the  span  fall  into  the  river)  was  ordered  to  be  destroyed. 
The  powder  failed  to  do  its  work,  and  the  enemy  was  seen  ap- 
proaching the  bridge  when  Colonel  FRICK,  ordered  it  to  be  set 
on  fire.  General  EARLY  said  in  York,  that,  if  the  bridge  had  not 
been  set  on  fire,  he  would  have  been  in  Lancaster  the  next 
(Monday)  morning.  Colonel  FRICK' s  opinion  of  my  conduct  and 
loyalty  on  this  occasion  is  expressed  as  follows : 

POTTSVILLE,  PA.,  Oct.  23d,  1863. 
Major  Granville  0.  Holler: 

DEAR  SIB  :  It  affords  me  great  pleasure  to  say  that  during  the  time  we  were 
associated  together  in  the  military  service  of  the  country  at  Columbia  and 
Wrightsville,  you  manifested  great  zeal  in  behalf  of  the  best  interests  of  the 
country,  and  was  indefatigable  in  your  efforts  while. aiding  me  to  make  such  dis- 
positions of  my  small  force  as  would  enable  us  to  repel  an  attack  of  the  rebel 
horde  that  marched  against  us  from  York.  At  no  time  did  I  hear  you  utter  a  dis- 
loyal word  or  sentiment.  I  believed  then  as  I  believe  now,  that  your  activity  and 
anxiety  to  thwart  the  enemy  was  prompted  by  the  purest  and  most  patriotic  mo- 
tives. Certainly  no  one  of  my  command  questioned  for  a  moment  your  patriot- 
ism or  your  sincerity. 

My  orders  were  to  prevent  the  enemy  from  crossing  the  Susquehanna  at  or 
near  Columbia  at  all  hazards  ;  and  when  the  propriety  of  destroying  the  Colum- 
bia Bridge  was  being  discussed,  you  joined  with  me  that  the  best  interests  of  the 
service — the  safety  of  the  Capital  of  the  State,  as  well  as  the  preservation  of 
Railroad  communication  between  that  point  and  Lancaster  and  Philadelphia,  de- 
manded its  destruction. 

lii  conclusion  I  have  only  to  say  that  your  conduct  met,  as  it  deserved,  my 


75 

approbation,   and  I  have   yet  to  hear  a  word  of  disparagement  from  those  with 
whom  you  were  associated. 

Very  respectfully,  your  Ob't.  Serv't, 

JACOB  G.  FRICK, 

Late  Col.  129th  Pa.  Vols., 

and  Col.  27th  Pa.  Vol.  Militia. 

Gen.  COUCH  then  directed  me  to  give  my  attention  to  the 
defences  of  the  Susquehauna,  to  visit  the  several  fords  and  see 
that  proper  defences,  (rifle-pits  and  abattis,)  were  constructed  to 
harass  the  enemy,  if  not  defeat  them,  in  any  attempt  to  cross 
the  river.  "When  this  danger  had  passed,  he  relieved  me,  and 
while  in  York  writing  out  reports  of  my  proceedings  at  the 
several  towns,  and  my  reconnoissances  at  the  several  fords  of  the 
Susquehanna,  I  received  on  the  28th  of  July,  in  reply  to  my  en- 
quiry of  the  Adjutant  General,  whether  I  should  repair  to  my 
regiment  ?  a  telegram  from  Major  EOBT.  WILLIAMS  saying,  that, 
"  By  Special  Orders  No.  331,  of  July  25th,  1863,  you  are  dis- 
missed the  service,  by  order  of  the  Secretary  of  War." 


OBSERVATIONS. 

The  principal  object,  in  the  foregoing  pages,  has  been  to 
present  the  evidences  of  my  LOYALTY  to  the  Constitution  and  the. 
Union  and  to  vindicate  my  conduct  and,  sentiments  to  my  Country- 
men. But  these  pages  will  do  more  :  they  will  furnish  materials 
for  serious  consideration  for  the  Thinking  portion  of  the  com- 
munity. 

My  dismissal,  from  the  U.  S.  Army,  would  be  of  little  conse- 
quence, if  it  were  not  for  the  principles  involved — principles 
which  have  been  established  and  respected  by  every  Adminis- 
tration from  the  organization  of  this  Federal  Government, 
except  the  present  one.  My  dismissal  is  a  part  of  the  history 
of  the  times,  and  every  Patriot  may  read  and  consider  its  ten- 
dency, with  profit. 

The  facts  presented  in  these  pages  contain  internal  evidences 
of  the  destruction  of  those  fundamental  principles  which  have 


76 

heretofore  regulated  at  least  the  administration  of  the  War 
Department.  It  will  be  difficult  to  shut  out  from  one's  mind 
the  evidence  that  we  are  now  governed  on  the  principle  that 
" MIGHT  MAKES  EIGHT"  to  the  exclusion  of  those  principles 
which  relied  on  their  INHERENT  WISDOM  AND  JUSTICE  for  the  sup- 
port and  approbation  of  the  American  People.  It  will  be  diffi- 
cult to  believe  otherwise  than  that  the  Secretary  of  War  is  con- 
scious that  his  charges  of  "  DISLOYAL  CONDUCT  AND  THE  UTTER- 
ANCE OF  DISLOYAL  SENTIMENTS  "  cannot  be  sustained,  and  will  not 
bear  a  moment's  investigation  ;  else  why  does  he  mutely  refuse 
me  an  investigation  of  his  direct  charges  against  me  ?  It  seems 
equally  clear,  that  the  Secretary  of  War  has  dismissed  me  for  a 
reason,  or  reasons,  which  he  is  unwilling  to  announce  to  a 
Thinking  Community,  and  therefore  takes  pains  not  to  write 
and  not  to  grant  anything  touching  my  case — not  even  to  allow 
me  to  g^t  a  copy  of  the  report,  or  more  properly  speaking,  the 
proceedings  of  Colonel  HOLT,  the  Judge  Advocate  General  U.  S. 
Army,  whose  examination  of  the  "  INFORMER  "  in  private,  and 
remarks  on  the  statements,  caused  my  dismissal.  And  here  I 
will  cite  the  act  of  Congress,  approved  April  10th,  1806,  com- 
monly called  the  "  Rules  and  Articles  of  War"  which,  so  far  as 
the  authority  of  Congress  goes,  is  "  the  Law  of  the  Land  "  to- 
day. It  reads  : 

Art.  90.  Every  Judge  Advocate,  or  person  officiating  as  such,  at  any  General 
Court-Martial,  shall  transmit,  with  as  much  expedition  as  the  opportunity  of 
time  and  distance  of  place  can  admit,  the  original  proceedings  and  sentence  of 
such  Court-Martial  to  the  Secretary  of  War  ;  which  said  original  proceedings 
and  sentence  shall  be  carefully  kept  and  preserved  in  the  office  of  said  Secretary, 
to  the  end  that  the  persons  entitled  thereto  may  be  enabled,  upon  application  to  the  said 
office,  to  obtain  copies  thereof." 

It  is  manifestly  the  spirit  and  the  letter  of  the  Law  that  an 
officer  should  have  a  fair  trial,  and  be  furnished  with  a  copy  of 
the  proceedings.  If  the  Department  were  honorably  adminis- 
tered there  would  be  no  occasion  for  concealment,  and  the  re- 
fusal to  investigate  creates  a  suspicion  that  there  is  something 
radically  wrong  in  the  action  of  the  Department. 

The  Eeader  may  consider  whether  the  War  is  any  longer  NA- 


77 

TIONAL?  The  whole  country  was  aroused  and  united  by  the 
Kesolutions  offered  by  ME.  CEITTENDEN,  and  adopted  by  Con- 
gress, that  the  existing  war  was  to  restore  the  Federal  Author- 
ity in  the  States  now  in  rebellion,  and,  when  this  is  accom- 
plished, the  war  is  to  cease.  It  was  not  to  interfere,  with  any  of 
the  rights  inherent  in  those  States.  In  this  the  Northern 
States  were  as  one.  But  are  they  one  now?  Are  we  not  now 
subject  to  the  dictation  of  a  party  occupying  a  section  only  of 
the  whole  Union  ?  Is  that  party  trying  to  preserve  the  Union 
as  it  was,  or  going  to  reconstruct  it  ?  Is  the  administration 
trying  to  preserve  the  Union  as  it  was,  or  using  all  its  energies, 
its  power,  patronage,  and  its  reputation,  to  keep  alive  this  sec- 
tional party  ?  Let  the  Patriot  ponder  on  these  things  well ! 
Is,  or  is  not  this  a  partisan  War  ?  What  officers  in  the  Army 
are  tabooed  ?  Have  any  officers  in  the  military  service  been 
dismissed  for  taking  the  stump  in  favor  of  the  Administration, 
or  the  party  which  supports  it :  or  for  exerting  themselves  at 
elections  in  behalf  of  the  Party  which  elected  MR.  LINCOLN  to 
power  ?  Have,  or  have  not,  officers,  with  the  highest  grade  in 
our  army,  set  an  example  of  stumping  a  State  ? 

But  the  most  remarkable  thing  which  is  connected  with  my 
dismissal,  is,  the  tribunal  which  has  brought  it  about.  The  IN- 
FORMER is  one  CLARK  H.  WELLS,  a  Lieut.  Commander  of  the 
U.  S.  Navy  :  the  PROSECUTOR  is  Colonel  JOSEPH  HOLT,  who  had 
the  case  all  to  himself :  and  the  JUDGE  and  EXECUTIVE  is  ED- 
WIN M.  STANTON.  And,  these  were  devoted  friends  (?)  of  the 
Democratic  Administration  while  MR.  BUCHANAN  dispensed  the 
public  patronage.  But  they  are  now  devoted  friends  of  the  Ad- 
ministration, or  "  the  Government." 

Of  the  latter  two,  it  is  generally  understood,  they  weje  com- 
petitors for  the  office  vacated  by  MR.  CAMERON,  Ex-Secretary  of 
War,  and  the  influence  of  GEN.  McCLELLAN  at  that  time,  with 
the  President,  obtained  for  MR.  STANTON  the  Port-folio.  Such 
partiality  and  kindness,  with  most  gentlemen,  would  have  cre- 
ated a  feeling  of  indebtedness,  and  a  disposition  to  support  to 
the  utmost  such  a  benefactor.  We  might  naturally  expect  cor- 
diality and  harmony  in  the  councils  of  the  Secretary  of  War  and 


78 

General-in-Chief.  But  public  sentiment  had  recognized  in  GEN- 
ERAL McCLELLAN  a  Military  Genius — the  military  operations  in 
all  quarters  were  prosperous,  and  victories  marked  our  path — 
and  all  Successes  were  ascribed  to  him.  The  power  and  abili- 
ties of  the  Secretary  of  War  seemed  lost  to  public  view.  This 
did  not  suit  MR.  STANTON.  He  soon  took  upon  himself  the  Com- 
mand-in-Chief  of  the  Army — he  soon  took  away  from  McCLEL- 
LAN a  part  of  his  Army,  and  he  saved  Eichmond  from  McCLEL- 
LAN'S  grasp!  Yes!  and  if  MCCLELLAN'S  generalship  had  not 
saved  his  Army  on  the  Chickahominy  Creek,  MR.  STANTON' s 
Generalship  would  have  given  the  Southern  Confederation  such 
a  victory  as  would  have  secured  the  recognition  of  their1  In- 
dependence in  Europe. 

As  for  Colonel  HOLT,  we  find  a  still  less  amiable  disposi- 
tion. As  the  blood  hound  follows  the  track  of  his  victim  and 
never  lets  up  until  he  is  destroyed — it  may  be  said  of  him,  he 
never  lets  up  until  he  has  accomplished  the  ruin  of  him  he 
wishes  to  destroy.  It  is  not  likely  that  he  will  forget  or  forgive 
GENERAL  MCCLELLAN  for  using  his  influence  to  his  [Col.  HOLT'S] 
prejudice,  when  seeking  MR.  CAMERON'S  place — nor  will  he  for- 
get any  of  that  General's  particular  admirers. 

I  have  before  me  a  letter  written  by  Col.  HOLT  dated  "  Wash- 
ington, Nov.  30th,  I860,"  which  pleads  so  strongly  for  the 
South,  that  no  political  views  of  mine  should  be  offensive  to 
him.  The  Colonel  writes  : 

' '  We  shall  soon  grow  up  a  race  of  Chieftains  who  will  rival  the  political 
bandits  of  South  America  and  Mexico,  and  who  will  carve  out  to  us  our  misera- 
ble heritage  with  their  bloody  swords.  The  masses  of  the  people  dream  not  of 
these  things.  They  suppose  the  Eepublic  can  be  destroyed  to-day  and  peace 
will  smile  over  its  ruins  to-morrow.  They  know  nothing  of  civil  war.  This 
marah  in  the  desert  of  the  pilgrimage  of  nations  has  happily  been  for  them  a 
sealed  fountain.  They  know  not  as  others  do  of  its  bitterness,  and  that  civil  war 
is  a  scourge  that  darkens  every  fireside  and  wrings  every  heart  with  anguish. 
They  are  to  be  commiserated,  for  they  know  not  what  they  do.  Whence  is  all 
this  ?  It  has  come  because  the  pulpit  and  the  press,  and  the  cowering,  unscrupu- 
lous politicians  of  the  North  have  taught  the  people  that  they  are  responsible  for 
the  domestic  institutions  of  the  South,  and  that  they  can  be  faithful  to  God  only 
by  being  unfaithful  to  the  compact  which  they  made  with  their  fellow  men. 
Hence  those  Liberty  bills  which  degrade  the  statute  books  of  some  ten  of  the 


79 

Free  States,  and  are  confessedly  a  shameless  violation  of  the  Federal  Constitution 
in  a  point  vital  to  her  honor.  We  have  here  presented  from  year  to  year,  the 
humiliating  spectacle  of  free  and  sovereign  States,  by  a  solemn  act 'n  f  legislation, 
legalizing  the  theft  of  their  neighbors'  property.  I  say  THEFT,  since  it  is  not  the  less 
so  because  the  subject  of  the  despicable  crime  chances  to  be  a  slave,  instead  of  u 
horse  or  a  bale  of  goods. 

From  this  same  teaching  has  come  the  perpetual  agitation  of  the  slavery 
question  which  has  reached  the  minds  of  the  slave  population  of  the  South,  and  has 
rendered  evfery  home  in  that  distracted  land  insecure.  This  is  the  feature  of  the 
irrepressible  conflict  with  which  the  Northern  people  are  not  familiar.  In  almost 
every  part  of  the  South,  miscreant  fanatics  have  been  found,  and  poisonings  and 
conflagrations  have  marked  their  footsteps.  Mothers  there  lay  down  at  night 
trembling  beside  their  children,  and  wives  cling  to  their  husbands  as  they  leave 
their  homes  in  the  morning*  I  have  a  brother  residing  in  Mississippi,  etc.,  etc. 
He  has  replied  to  me  at  much  length,  and  after  depicting  the  machinations  of  the 
wretches  to  whom  I  have  alluded,  and  the  consternation  which  reigns  in  the 
homes  of  the  South,  he  says  it  is  the  unalterable  determination  of  the  Southern 
people  to  overthrow  the  Government,  as  the  only  refuge  which  is  left  to  them 
from  these  insupportable  wrongs,  and  he  adds:  "  On  the  success  of  this  move- 
ment* depends  my  every  earthly  interest — the  safety  of  my  roof  from  the  fire- 
brand, and  of  my  wife  and  children  from  the  poison  and  the  dagger." 

I  give  you  his  language  because  it  truthfully  expresses  the  Southern  mind, 
which,  at  this  moment,  glows  as  a  furnace  in  its  hatred  to  the  North  because  of  these 
infernal  agitations.  Think  you  that  any  people  can  endure  this  condition  of 
things?  When  the  Northern  preacher  infuses  into  his  audience  the  spirit  of 
assassins  and  incendiaries  in  his  crusade  against  slavery,  does  he  think,  as  he 
lies  down  quietly  at  night,  of  the  Southern  homes  he  has  robbed  of  sleep  and  the 
helpless  women  and  children  he  has  exposed  to  all  the  nameless  horrors  of  servile 
insurrection? 

I  am  still  for  the  Union,  because  I  have  yet  a  faint  hesitating  hope  that  the 
North  will  do  justice  to  the  South,  and  save  the  Kepublic  before  the  wreck  is 
complete.  But  action  to  be  available  must  be  prompt.  If  the  free  States  will 
sweep  the  Liberty  bills  from  their  codes,  propose  a  convention  of  the  States,  and 
offer  guaranties  which  will  afford  the  same  repose^and  safety  to  Southern  homes 
and  property  enjoyed  by  those  in  the  North,  the  impending  tragedy  may  yet  be 
averted,  but  not  otherwise.  I  feel  a  positive  personal  humiliation  as  a  member 
of  the  human  family  in  the  events  now  preparing.  If  the  Republic  is  to  be 
offered  as  a  sacrifice  upon  the  altar  of  African  servitude,  then  the  question  of 
man's  capacity  for  self-government  is  forever  settled.  The  derision  of  the  world 
will  henceforth  justly  treat  the  pretension  as  a  farce,  and  the  blessed  hope 
which,  for  five  thousand  years,  our  race,  amid  storms  and  battles,  has  been 
hugging  to  its  bosom,  will  be  demonstrated  to  be  a  phantom  and  a  dream." 
P%  *  *  *  ****  *  ...|  .,..'•* 

[Signed,]  J.  HOLT. 

As  for  Lieut.  Commander  WELLS,  he  can  produce  evidence  to 


80 

prove  himself  a  Secession  Sympathiser — a  Democrat — a  Repub- 
lican and  exquisitely  loyal  to  the.  present  Administration,  as  it 
may  suit  his  interests. 

Notwithstanding  he  reported  me  on  the  3d  of  March,  1863,  to 
the  Secretary  of  War,  for  uttering  in  his  presence,  on  or  about 
the  15th  of  December,  1862,  such  "  disloyal  sentiments"  as  to 
"  call  forth  a  severe  rebuke"  from  him  and  to  cause  hi^n  to  leave 
my  tent, — all  of  which  he  assures  the  Secretary  ;  yet  in  January 
and  February,  between  these  dates,  he  kept  up  quite  a  pleasant 
correspondence  with  me,  from  the  Philadelphia  Navy  Yard,  assur- 
ing me  that  "  no  one  can  doubt  his  loyalty" — "  when  we  are  en- 
gaged in  a  deadly  struggle  to  sustain  our  Government,  I  would 
sacrifice  my  son."  [The  poor  little  boy !  Harry,  his  only  son, 
was  only  seven  years  old !  and  thinks  of  sacrificing  him,  while 
he  is  safe  at  the  Navy  Yard  at  Philadelphia !]  "I  regard  slavery 
as  a  curse  to  our  country  and  the  cause  of  this  hell-born  rebel- 
lion."— "  Were  it  not  that  I  had  been  away  a  year  in  the  South 
Atlantic  Squadron,  and  for  the  sake  of  my  family,  I  would  pre- 
fer going  to  sea  in  these  exciting  times,  although  my  naval 
friends  tell  me  that  I  have  done  my  share.  I  think  not,  for  I 
believe  that  no  officer  can  do  too  much  to  assist  in  crushing  out 
this  sinful  rebellion." 

But,  for  this  glowing  loyalty,  he  had  obtained  his  price  !  For 
as  long  as  he  had  been  a  Democrat,  he  assured  a  political 
acquaintance  that  "  The  Democrats  have  never  done  anything 
for  me  :  but  see  what  the  Eepublicans  are  going  to  do — why 
they  are  going  to  send  me  to  the  Philadelphia  Navy  Yard." 

Even  a  solemn  oath  is  no  obstacle  to  this  officer,  for  after  he 
had  sworn  on  the  Holy  Bible  to  the  new  oath  of  allegiance,  he 
declared  to  a  visitor  that  he  "  had  just  performed  the  most 
painful  act  of  his  life — that  he  had  been  compelled  to  take  the 
oath  of  allegiance,  or  be  dismissed  from  the  service,  and  that 
his  necessities  had  made  him  do  this  violence  to  his  views  re- 
garding the  war  then  commencing." 

And  in  «a  letter  before  me,  written  with  his  own  hand,  he 
says :  "  I  should  not  be  surprised  if  I  should  be  obliged  '  to 
turn  my  sword  into  a  ploughshare.'  I  would  rather  do  that 
than  be  called  upon  to  use  it  against  my  countrymen." 


81 

« 

» 

And  while  with  the  South  Atlantic  Squadron,  he  there  solic- 
ited the  command  of  a  leaking  vessel  knowing  that  it  must  soon 
be  sent  home  for  repairs  ;  and  soon  after  landing  in  the  North, 
he  solicited  and  obtained  the  command  of  the  Navy  Yard  at 
Philadelphia  ;  and  has  ever  since  escaped  active  service  against 
the  Southern  Confederacy. 

These  are  not  my  assertions,  they  are  the  statements  of  differ- 
enj  gentlemen,  whose  veracity  will  not  be  questioned,  and  who 
can  make  oath  to  their  declarations.  Yet  this  ME.  WELLS  is 
the  INFORMER  in  my  case  :  all  three,  in  this  tribunal,  are  known 
to  have  entertained  sentiments  at  variance  with  those  they  now 
profess,  yet  make  no  allowance  for  a  difference  of  opinion  in 
others. 

In  the  foregoing  pages  I  have  given  a  synopsis  of  my  military 
service  for  nearly  twenty-four  years,  with  a  few  extracts  from 
official  reports  as  to  my  conduct.  I  have  been  in  a  great  many 
important  engagements  with  Civilized,  awd  with  Savage  foes, 
and  have  been  honored  with  strong  expressions  of  commenda- 
tion from  my  Superior  officers.  I  have  seen  the  printed  list  of 
the  officers  recommended  for  Brevets,  for  services  in  1862,  and 
found  my  name  had  been  submitted  to  the  Senate,  for  the 
Brevet  Commission  of  Lieutenant  Colonel.  I  believe  my  ser- 
vices have  uniformly  b'een  satisfactory.  Notwithstanding  I 
have  been  on  many  well-fought  battle  fields,  and  have  on  all  oc- 
casions faithljally  discharged  my  duties ; — notwithstanding  I 
have  endured  great  privations,  hardships,  and  dangers :— not- 
withstanding I  have  aided  as  far  as  laid  in  my  power,  to  restore 
the  Federal  authority  in  the  States  now  in  rebellion  : — I  have 
been  expelled  from  the  Army  overwhelmed  with  whatever  of 
infamy  it  is  possible  for  MR.  STANTON  to  heap  upon  me,  and 
he  has  exchanged  my  knowledge  and  experience  in  War,  for  a 
person  who  must  enter  the  Regular  Army  at  the  bottom  of  Sec- 
ond Lieutenants,  and  then  learn  his  profession.  It  is  true  Mr. 
STANTON  *can  appoint  one,  whose  friends  may  bring  him  more 
influence  to  support  his  designs,  but  this  canrrot  make  the  Army 
more  efficient.  And,  in  this  way  a  designing  man,  with  an 
Army  so  immense  as  ours  now  is,  may  prostitute  the  office  of 


82 

• 

Secretary  of  War  to  procure  influence,  until  his  power  is  suffi- 
cient to  trample  the  Constitution  under  his  feet. 

Is  it  then  DISLOYAL  to  examine  into,  and  speak  of  the  conduct 
of  members  of  the  Administration  ?  On  this  point,  I  will  quote 
JUDGE  PEARSON  of  the  Dauphin  District  of  Pennsylvania,  who 
is  well  known  for  his  Administration  sentiments,  or  to  use  the 
language  of  the  newspaper  before  me  "  a  double-dyed  Bepubli- 
can."  In  a  charge  to  his  Grand  Jury  on  the  subject  of  disloy- 
alty, he  says  :  "  Do  not  misunderstend  me  on  this  point :  men 
"  have  the  most  unlimited  right  to  condemn,  and  if  you  please, 
"to  rail  at  the  National  Administration,  and  to  object  to  the 
"  manner  in  which  it  conducts  public  affairs.  *••"*•.*.'•* 

"  Parties  will  always  exist  in  every  free  country,  and  wheth- 
"er  men  will  sustain  or  oppose  a  particular  Administration 
"  is  one  in  which  there  should  ever  be  the  most  perfect  freedom 
"  of  opinion. 

"  There  certainly  call  be  no  diffiulty  with  persons  of  ordi- 
"  nary  intelligence  in  drawing  the  distinction  between  sustain- 
"  ing  the  Government  itself,  and  sustaining  or  opposing  those 
"  who  temporarily  administer  its  affairs  [i.  e.  the  Adminis- 
tration]. The  latter  is  a  question  of  party,  the  former  of 
"patriotism." 

Again,  ME.  SEWARD,  Secretary  of  «8tate,  in  his  letter  of 
November  10th,  1862,  to  MR.  ADAMS,  our  Minister  in  England, 
says: 

"  It  is  a  habit,  not  only  entirely  consistent  with  the  Constitu- 
"  tion,  but  even  essential  to  its  stability,  to  regard  the  Adminis- 
"  tration,  at  any  time  existing,  as  distinct  and  separable  from 
"  the  Government  itself,  and  to  canvass  the  proceedings  of  the 
"  one  without  the  thought  of  disloyalty  to  the  other." 

I  have  sometimes  canvassed  the  proceedings  of  the  Adminis- 
tration, but  always  without  one  thought  of  disloyalty  to  the.  Consti- 
tution, and  MR.  SEWARD  expressly  says  this  canvassing  is  "even 
essential  to  its  stability."  "We  find  above  that  the  Government 
is  one  thing  and  tlfe  Administration  is  quite  another, — that  our 
loyalty  is  entirely  due  to  the  Constitution,  and  it  is  our  duty  to 
maintain  it  in  its  integrity.  From  the  commencement  of  the 


83 

Secession  agitation,  my  only  desire  has  been  to  see  the  question 
settled,  so  that  UNION  AND  FRATERNITY  would  still  exist !  All  my 
conversations  and  writings  aimed  at  this  one  object.  I  have 
endeavored  to  be  purely  Patriotic.  The  Constitution  knows  no 
North  and  no  South,  and  I  have  thought  only  of  the  benefits 
which  will  flow  'from  A  PRESERVED,  not  a  reconstructed  Union. 
Even  if  I  had  done  a  wrong,  my  offence  must  be  slight,  for  I 
had  never  voted  nor  circulated  tickets  against  the  Administra- 
tion :  I  had  neither  written  for  newspapers  nor  spoken  at 
public  meetings :  my  duties  prevented  my  interfering  in  any  way 
with  elections,  and  yet  my  conduct  is  denounced  by  MR.  STAN- 
TON  as  DISLOYAL,  and  it  is  extraordinary,  that  he  will  not  allow 
me  to  see  or  get  a  copy  of  the  secret  proceedings  upon  which  he 
charges  me  with  DISLOYALTY — the  Articles' of  War  to  the  contrary 
notwithstanding. 

I  speak  of  MR.  STANTON,  because  I  believe  the  PRESIDENT  has 
too  much  business  of  more  importance  to  engage  his  attention, 
than  will  permit  him  personally  to  investigate  the  allegations 
against  Officers  of  the  Army,  except  those  high  in  rank,  there- 
fore, if  he  knows  any  thing  whatever  of  my  case  he  has  obtained 
it  through  MR.  STANTON,  and  of  course,  is  the  ex  parte  informa- 
tion, which  MR.  STANTON  is  unwilling  to  give  me,  as  if  ashamed 
of  it. 

The  President,  indeed,  is  authorized  by  act  of  Congress  to 
dismiss  officers,  when  in  his  opinion  the  good  of  the  service 
may  require  it,  but  special  orders  No.  331  of  July  25th  1863, 
says,  I  am  dismissed  for  "  disloyal  conduct  and  the  utterance  of 
disloyal  sentiments,"  and  the  evidence  I  have  presented  in  this 
pamphlet  will  prove  that  this  reason  is  incorrect  and  cannot  be 
sustained.  Then  it  is  but  right — tt  is  a  privilege  clearly  mine — 
to  know  exactly  what  this  language  means  upon  which  I  have 
been  dismissed.  And  after  I  have  assured  MR.  STANTON  that  I 
have  not  been  DISLOYAL  in  conduct  nor  sentiments,  and  asked 
for  an  investigation — asked  to  be  sent  before  the  COMMISSION 
which  daily  investigated  the  cases  of  dismissed  officers,,  to  ascertain 
whether  the  reports  against  them  were  false  as  the  Accused  had 
alleged — it  was  my  right — the  Constitution  guarantees  a  speedy 


84 

trial ;  the  Articles  of  War  provides  for  trial— it  was  a  privilege 
of  mine  to  have  a  hearing. 

And  I  will  venture  to  say  that  my  dismissal  rests  upon  the 
special'  pleadings  of  Col.  HOLT,  the  Judge  Advocate  General, 
whose  implacable  malignity,  towards  Gen.  MnCT.Fjj.AN,  extends 
to  those  subordinate  officers,  who  have  a  high  regard  for  him. 
In  my  position,  I  had  peculiar  opportunities  to  observe  the 
General's  private  character  and  worth,  as  well  as  military  abili- 
ties. I  have  often  made  "  grand  rounds  "  of  the  Headquarters' 
Guards,  at  two  o'clock  in  the  morning  and  even  later,  and  found 
the  lights  still  burning  in  his  tent,  and  the  General  engaged  in 
his  studies  and  duties  of  the  field.  I  have  seen  and  felt  the  en- 
thusiasm which  his  presence  among  the  soldiers  has  inspired, 
and  heard  their  loud  and  heart-felt  "huzzas!"  I  have  fre- 
quently spoken  of  his  merits,  but  even  if  he  had  lacked  ability, 
I  have  thought  the  devotion  to  him,  of  the  Army  of  the  Poto- 
mac, was  sufficient  reason  to  retain  him  in  the  field,  for  it  was 
worth  thousands  of  soldiers.  This,  in  the  eyes  of  Col.  HOLT,  is 
no  doubt  a  crime,  and  when  the  proceedings  of  his  secret  inqui- 
sition is  dragged  to  light,  and  placed  before  the  Public,  it  will 
be  found  that  my  greatest  crime  is,  that  I  have  been  THE  COM- 
MANDANT OF  GENEEAL  MCCLELLAN'S  HEADQTJARTEES  during  his 
campaigns  in  Eastern  Virginia  and  in  Maryland. 

I  have  presented  the  charges  against  me,  and  the  testimony 
of  many  witnesses,  and  my  services  for  nearly  twenty  four  years, 
as  overwhelming  proof  to  rebut  them.  I  now  respectfully 
submit  the  case  to  the  Public  and  ask  them  to  judge  between  us. 
I  have  thought  it  but  right  to  show  that  the  trio,  who  have  in- 
formed on  me,  prosecuted  me,  and  condemned  me,  have  by  no 
means  clean  hands.  And  I  respectfully,  but  most  earnestly, 
protest  against  this  mode  of  proceeding  with  the  characters  and 
honor  of  officers  who  have  spent  almost  a  quarter  of  a  century 
in  the  U.  $.  Army. 


